Avengers of Camp Half-Blood
by TCMMerida
Summary: The movies, the comics, the spinoffs? What if they were all a plan of Athena to disguise demigods in our world? Convinced this is causing harm to both worlds, Chiron insists that the Avengers return to Camp Half-Blood to lay low for a while. With Percy having recently returned from college and Leo being close to upgrading Festus, what could possibly go wrong? Rated T just in case.
1. An Old Friend Comes to Town

"Bucky, put the gun down," Steve's voice was calm, but the anxiety which was boiling inside of him couldn't be contained for long.

"They took everything from me Steve," Bucky winced, raising his head toward the clouded skyline. "I'm sorry Steve, but this is the only way I can save you."

"The war is over Buck! No one is going to hurt you, Hydra's gone!" He pleaded.

"I'm sorry."

"No!" Steve yelled definitely, leaping at his friend, trying to rip the gun out of his hands.

 _Bang_. The scene ran red with the blood of the Winter Soldier.

Steve bolted up, reaching for his shield which lay next to his bedside. His chest was drenched in sweat, his sky blue eyes were focused across his bedroom at Stark Tower. He grinded his teeth and knitted his eyebrows together before he finally relaxed. He dropped the shield and lowed his head between his knees, leaning on his elbows.

The nightmares were getting worse. Ever since the defeat of Hydra a year ago, nightmares of what could have happened had been plaguing Captain America. They prevented him from sleeping well, and as a result, his work had been a lot sloppier; letting the occasional baddie run free, getting into useless arguments with Tony and the gang. It all seemed to be getting too big for him, a burden that grew in the shadows.

A knock on the door interrupted the Captain's thoughts. It creaked open and a groggy looking Bucky stood in the door. His tank top was placed sloppily over his body as if he had just thrown it on; his hair was sticking out in all directions as if he were a hedgehog. His eyes were filled with concern and a certain tenderness which he rarely displayed for anyone other than those closest to him.

"Nightmares?" He inquired.

Steve sighed in agreement. It was normal for their kind to have nightmares, but the dreams were so intense and vivid, it was hard to distinguish truth from lie.

He studied Bucky; he had known firsthand what it felt like to not know what not right. Brainwashed by Hydra, then frozen, only to be thawed when he could be used as an assassin against Hydra's enemies; Bucky's life had turned out to be that of one of misery and regret. Despite his crimson past, he was seeking help from the best psychologists in the world; although many of them were baffled on how to approach a 100 year old assassin who could break their necks but apologize right after for doing so.

The thought almost made Steve laugh. Bucky, the guy who had endured more torment than most ordinary mortals can stand was standing in his doorway, making sure that his best friend was okay.

"What's so funny?" Bucky mused.

"Nothing," Steve smirked "that bed head is really working for you."

Bucky ran his fingers briskly through his chin length locks, smoothing them into place.

"Punk," he whispered.

"Jerk," Steve retorted.

Bucky lumbered over to Steve and extended his arm.

"C'mon, I'm hungry," he declared.

Grabbing his arm, Steve lifted himself out of bed and grabbed a fresh t-shirt to throw on.

"Hey, I know you and I are close, but I'd rather no-"

"Way ahead of you," Bucky responded, the door shutting behind him.

Grinning, Steve adorned the grey t-shirt, a pair of blue jeans and black sneakers. He checked the time before heading down to the kitchen. The clock read 8:59. The Captain nodded with satisfaction and proceeded to make his way downstairs.

When he arrived, Tony Stark and Bruce Banner seemed to be in heavy discussion over some new technology, neither of them noticing the fact that their toast was no longer bread but resembled black coal.

A fire alarm sounded which startled Wanda Maximoff who was drinking orange juice by the windows; her cup began to fall which was caught shortly midair by her now boyfriend, Vision.

"Again you guys, that's the third time this week," exclaimed Sam who was poking his fork in a hardboiled egg.

Tony raised his arms in defeat.

"You want new toast? I'll buy you some," he said sarcastically.

"Yeah, and how about a new suit? You fried my last one with that magnetic ray thing you and Banner created," Wilson exclaimed.

"It's really unfair of you to put all the blame on me when Banner was just as involved as I was," Tony begun.

Eyes from all of the room stared at Tony.

"Nevertheless, I've ordered a new suit to be custom made for you. I even requested for one of those micro tracking missiles to be installed. How's that for generous?" Tony spread his hands as if asking for applause from the Avengers.

"Just open a window Tony," Steve said, grabbing an apple in his hands.

"Just open a window Tony," Stark mimicked Steve's voice in a girlish way and then commanded Jarvis to open all eastern windows.

About two years ago there had been some serious issues with the Avengers; Tony finally had learned the truth about his parents and how they died. Bucky, though he was brainwashed, felt the guilt very clearly in his conscience but due to the serum which had been marinating in his body for years, found it quite difficult to express the proper emotions to him. The situation hadn't improved at all when Steve Rodgers confessed to Stark that he had known all along that it was Bucky that assassinated his parents. As a result, there was a giant rift torn between the Avengers; a rift some doubted could ever be mended.

It took time, counselling, and a good deal of personal space, but the Avengers were able to assemble once again to defeat the remains of Hydra. Now, they were in New York City, living together at Stark Tower.

Not all Avengers were currently there of course; Scott Lang was trying to be a better parent and working full time with Hank Pym on new assignments and gear for the team. Black Widow was currently on a "business trip" to Italy (no one ever seemed to know the true nature of her trips). Thor was in Asgard with his father, preparing to take over the throne permanently, Black Panther was occupied in Wakanda and Peter Parker was still in school. Despite their absence, it always seemed there was enough trouble brewing in the tower to keep the smaller group busy.

Bucky sat down next to Steve with a bowl full of Lucky Charms. He insisted that it was the best thing he could eat to assure himself that he was in this century and not still stuck in the hand of Hydra; Steve just thought it was because since tasting the present day food, Bucky had developed a serious sugar addiction.

The chatting continued through breakfast time, discussion developments of rumors and crimes, recapping the latest scores in football, joking at each other's expense. Everyone seemed in decent spirits, which left Steve feeling reassured and content.

The doorbell rung.

"Tony, are you expecting anyone?" Wanda asked, peering outside the window.

Tony shrugged his shoulders.

"Not that I know of, but if they cleared security on all floors, it's probably someone we know."

"Since when is that good logic?" Bucky sneered.

"Well, open the door, be my guest," Tony gestured his arm in a swooping motion toward the door.

Steve got off the couch and rolled his shoulders in a stretching manner.

"I'll get the door," he decided.

He tossed his apple core into the garbage and proceeded to the door. He opened the door cautiously, ready to sprint in case of a sudden attack. At first glance, it appeared to be a shaggy looking man who could have passed for a college professor. He wore a tweed jacket that smelt like roasted coffee, rimless glasses, and a green button up shirt. The man sat in a wheel chair and over his legs was a green and brown checkered blanket, underneath which poked out a pair of leather shoes. His eyes were timeless, too old to fit into this man's middle aged body.

Steve recognized this man immediately, this man had coached him and trained him when he was a young boy; although he had never dreamed of seeing him again. Suddenly it occurred to Steve that almost, if not everyone in the room would have met this man too.

"Chiron?"

"Glad to see that you still recognize me Steve Rodgers, although I wouldn't be able to say the same about you, if it were not for your ever growing popularity," Chiron said in a critical tone. His voice was firm, but in a fatherly way, as if to say "son, eat your vegetables or else you won't be able to grow big and strong."

Steve stepped inside and in rolled Chiron. Everyone's expressions mirrored Steve's; disbelief, amazement and a slight twinge of horror. Their old teacher had returned.


	2. Battle in the Kitchen

"Why are you here Chiron," Bucky asked, refusing to meet the man's eyes.

Chiron narrowed his gaze, fixing it upon each of the Avengers.

"You all know why I am here, you just don't realize what you all have in common."

"We are all aware that we are all demigods, if that's what you mean," Sam piped up.

"That is not what I am here about," Chiron chided. "I am here because when each of you were _individually_ sent out from Camp Half Blood, you all made promises. It has finally been brought to my attention that you have all broken, if not completely destroyed those binding words."

Nervous glances were shared throughout the room, Steve could see visible beads of sweat forming on Bucky's brow.

"I could use a refresher on said promise," Tony exhaled. "I've made a lot of promises with good intention to keep, but running a multibillion-"

"Promises sworn on the River Styx," Chiron's voiced boomed in the room. An eerie chill enveloped the room, sending icy claw's up Steve's spine.

"Can any of you actually recite the promises you made?"

Steve breathed heavily, then raised his eyes to meet the agitated director.

"To lay low, protect the mortals and demigods alike."

Chiron arched his brow.

"Yes, and what have you done? Hmm? Protected mortals and demigods, sure, but laying low? Those attacks that keep happening, do you think they are simply by chance? You guys made a movie about yourselves and you expected that you would remain unnoticed. I wonder if you all have ignored all your training that was given to you, or perhaps you have grown so confident in your abilities it has manifested into arrogance.

"We're sorry Chiron, but the cover story we have we all agreed was great protection. Movie actors, monsters are really just computer generated images, no one really dies in the movies, again they are all just act-" Bruce began to list off their cleverly constructed disguise.

"Bruce Banner, as a Son of Athena I would expect you of all people to see how dangerous and foolish this is. You have been far too careless with the Mist, it can't hide all your errors and attacks. Hecate has issued a formal complaint, saying her servants have been working overtime just to coat this street alone!"

Many heads turned to Wanda; despite her being relatively young, everyone knew that her power as a child of Hecate was stronger than most demigods.

"Is this why you've been so tired lately?" Vision questioned.

" I felt it was my duty," she replied softly.

"Why didn't you tell us?" he demanded.

"I am happy to protect my friends and mortals alike, I've been taking the night shift so my siblings can sleep during the day," Wanda explained.

"You could have told us," Steve ventured.

"And what good would that have done?" Wanda continued, "we have seven demigods living under one roof, all who have active presence in the mortal world. It wouldn't have changed anything if you had known."

Steve scoured his thoughts for some reassuring words, but the effort was in vain. Chiron and Wanda made good points, they had become too noisy in the mortal world, and admittedly, mortals and demigods alike had died because of their carelessness.

He peered at Bucky who was wearing an unreadable expression. His eyes were glazed over, fixated on the coffee table, his hands clenched tightly together. Steve offered a reassuring touch to Bucky's shoulder which Bucky relaxed a bit at.

Steve and Bucky had met at Camp Half Blood. Steve has been claimed as a child of Zeus, which had been quite the shock that time. According to the comics (Banner's brilliant cover up plan) it was a science experiment which granted him his great physique and athletic abilities. In reality, it had been a blessing from Zeus after Steve had slain a giant, nearly sacrificing himself to protect his friend Bucky.

Bucky was not a child of Zeus, he was a child of Hermes. He had always been good at communicating with others and adapting to situations as they came to him. He was a natural warrior, loyal to a fault. Bucky also had the uncanny ability to move around unnoticed, a natural gift to the children of the god of thieves. Together in combat, the two of them could face almost any foe, which is what my Hydra so irresistible at the time.

Chiron cleared his throat.

"I have sought the council of the gods and we have come to an agreement. Stark, Rodgers, Barnes, and Wilson, you five will be returning with me to stay the summer at Camp Half-Blood. There you will attend lessons once again and also mentor our younger campers," he instructed with a tone that sounded like he would personally incinerate anyone who objected to this plan.

Vision flashed a curious look in Wanda's direction.

"What about Wanda and I? Should we not also go?" Despite the willingness in his words, his voice implied reluctance.

"Wanda left the camp only a few years ago, I believe she still have good moral groundings even though her actions in the last couple years have been...rushed," Chiron chose his words with extreme caution. "The council deemed that it would be best to leave a few Avengers behind, so as to not alarm the mortals and cause more chaos than there already is. Vision, as a child of Forseti, the Norse god, the camp agreed that your presence, although welcomed, would not be necessary. You will stay with Wanda, take care of each other."

Vision kept a calm face, but his eyes shone with gratitude. Wanda wove her fingers in between Visions and gave him a small smile.

"As for the rest of you, pack your bags, you leave immediately," Chiron clapped his hands together in a sarcastic enthusiastic way.

Bucky looked up, his eyes were less intense now and more curious.

"What happens if we refuse?"

Chiron's stare burned into Bucky's skull.

"This is an order from Olympus, I would not question the gods judgment on the matter, Barnes."

Slowly, everyone trickled into their rooms and began collecting what possessions they wished to bring with them to the camp. Steve had personally decided to take his shield, enough clothes to fill an Adidas duffle bag, as well as a picture of Sharon Carter.

Steve fought to keep any tears from slipping; Sharon and he were on a secretive mission last fall, they had ended up trapped in a room set to self destruct. When is blew, he had tried to shelter her from the explosion, but some shrapnel had pierced her heart and she had passed on before the ambulance had arrived. He had struggled daily to not the memory of her warm lips pressed against his for the last time slip from his mind; her blonde hair singed from the fires that peppered the room. He never even got to tell her the true feelings he had for her.

He pressed the photo against his chest, as if he were embracing it. For a moment, he almost believed he could smell her cinnamon perfume and hear her sparkling laughter. He opened his eyes and the moment was gone.

He was about to go join the others when a resounding _crash_ echoed beneath him. Steve hoisted his shield and sprinted to the elevator, repeatedly slamming his finger on the button.

"C'mon, c'mon," the Captain whispered aggressively. Finally the door chimed and opened. He bolted inside and hit the button again. The doors closed and he descended. The glass elevator was a nice touch to Stark Tower; you could see into the rooms before you got off, or in this case, your enemies.

Glass was strewn by the window, or at least where the window should have been. Someone had hit the emergency exit button as sirens were wailing throughout the building. Furniture was knocked over, curtains torn, the flat screen TV was smashed and currently had a odd looking creature stuck in it. The sink in the kitchen was broken, causing a spray of water to arch over the counter and pool in a puddle next to a struggling Wanda, who was currently levitating a strange looking beast. Next to her, Vision was zapping down creatures as fast as he could.

The creatures themselves looked like an odd human, bird hybrid. They had spindly legs and a feathered waist, wings of a bird, but the torso and head of a human. They used their claws with precision, slashing at anything moving.

Chiron had come out of his wheelchair and grown into his full strength as a centaur. He bellowed orders and formations, some of which Steve had forgotten the meaning of, but the Avengers did the best they could to comply.

To his left, he saw Tony trying to beat a bird off his back, the bird was ferociously pecking at Tony's suit. Steve swung his arm back and released his shield; it zipped across the room and sliced the bird in two, causing it to turn into ashy golden dust. He recalled receiving his shield; it had been designed to have a thin layer of celestial bronze coating the rim of the shield, so when it penetrated the flesh of a monster, the monster would disintegrate into a pile of golden dust. Steve had often wondered why monster dust was gold; why could it not be purple, or even red to mimic the colour of blood?

His thoughts were cut short as a blood curdling " _screeeeech"_ as a mangy purple beast crashing into him, thrashing his claws at the Captain's face.

"Ahhh!" Bucky crashed his metal arm into the bird, knocking it off of Steve, but not killing it. Steve shot a thankful look at Bucky, then ran to retrieve his shield.

"There'll be more coming!" Chiron shouted. "We must make haste to the Camp!"

"Why are they only attacking now?" Sam asked while using his wings as blades to slice and dice the monsters.

"Their advantage has run out since I arrived, and I don't mean that in an arrogant way," the centaur explained as he stabbed the beast through with his sword. "The monsters have been attacking you in a strategic manner, only when they thought they could. Now that they are aware that you are going to be safe, their plans have been shaken. They want you dead!"

"Well that's something new!" Tony grunted, striking down another bird. His suit was badly clawed, paint chipping off with each impact of the talons. "What do you suggest we do to defeat these things?"

"Harpies? They are coming in waves, once this one dies out, I have help on the way to escort you all to camp."

"What about Vision and Wanda?" Bucky shouted from somewhere else in the room. Steve couldn't see anything past the mound of down growing around him.

"I've arranged a safe house for them, they will leave immediately following our grand escape," Chiron reassured.

"Less talk, more fight!" Banner rumbled in Hulk form. The big guy was grabbing harpies and tearing the beings in two; Steve almost pitied the creatures that happened to cross the Hulk's path. He was more than grateful that the Hulk was a monster on their side.

More harpies swarmed into the room, ringing squawks and shrieks acted as their only background music; not that motivating. With each swing of his shield, Captain America was able to fend off a couple harpies, but they kept crowding him towards the open window. The harpies began pecking at his flesh, scraping their razor sharp talons at his exposed arms.

Hot fire surged through his veins, the agony tempted him to pass out. Steve lost track of where he was or what he was doing, his motions became automatic. Then the surface changed; or rather disappeared.

Steve looked down in horror as he realized that he was hurtling to the ground. He tried to yell for Sam to come get him, but the cry of the harpies drowned any attempt he could make.

He slammed his eyes shut and began to think, he was a child of Zeus, they could fly right? It had been so long since he attempted, he doubted he could even lift a toe off the ground. Still, Chiron had always said that in life or death situations is when demigods are often the most dangerous.

Steve concentrated all his willpower towards his hands and thought _up_. Suddenly, a dark shadow appeared five feet beneath him; he had barely enough time to register it before he thumped on the creature, winding himself in the process.

"Oops, sorry man, but I thought you could use a life," a young man, probably early twenties looked at Steve with a smile that screamed mischief. His sea green eyes expressed more humour than concern, as if the boy was thinking _dude, I just caught Captain America in midair before he fell to his doom; I'm so good!_

Steve's vision was blurred and breath was shallow, but the object, if he wasn't already unconscious and in some sort of twisted nightmare, appeared to be a black winged horse. He regarded the man again with a dazed and baffled expression. The boy helped rearrange him on the flying horse, propping Steve up against his own body.

"Don't worry about your friends, they're on their way; we have to get out of here though or we'll be up to our nostrils in harpy feathers," the guy cracked a smile.

Steve mumbled a sort of response, blinking his eyes repeatedly to focus on the surrounding skies. He saw Falcon jump through a window and soar towards him, behind him Tony appeared in full Iron Man suit, carrying a very bewildered looking Bucky. The Hulk and Chiron were nowhere to be seen, but Steve thought he saw a red figure carrying a small silhouette in the opposite direction of Stark Tower. _Vision and Wanda_ , Steve thought.

The boy whom Steve was leaning against said something like "No donuts now, later okay Blackjack, I promise," then turned around to Steve.

"I love this horse, but he has a _serious_ sugar addiction," he smirked. Steve looked at him confused, clearly this boy was insane. What kind of horse would like donuts? Then again, Steve had just been rescued by a flying creature with a boy whom apparently could speak to them. He decided it would be best not to question anything else that may have changed since his time at Camp Half-Blood.

The pegasus bolted downwards and descended to the pavement. Steve leaned over and saw that Bruce and Chiron were waiting for them at the base of the building. Sam, Tony and Bucky all gathered with the others as Steve and the young man landed.

"The taxi should be here soon, Sam and Bucky you will be riding in that. Two more pegasi will be arriving shortly to carry Banner and Stark to camp, but Steve, you took the biggest blow so you are riding back with Percy immediately."

" _Percy?_ " Steve questioned.

The boy turned his head around, his shaggy black hair and crazed eyes flashed him a wicked smile.

"Percy Jackson, at your service," he chimed. "Let's get you to camp, Cap."


	3. Aerial Introductions

_Thank you so much for all your support so far! I plan to continue this for a while; this was meant to be a filler chapter but it got away on me. Hope you enjoy it!_

This isn't the kind of day Percy had planned on having. Just a few hours ago, Percy had been saying goodbye to his long time girlfriend Annabeth at Camp Jupiter where they had both been attending college. Annabeth was staying behind to complete an honours summer course; Percy couldn't wrap his head around why it would be an honour to stay at school during the summer.

Now, he was carting a very displeased looking Captain America to camp. Percy had been flying Blackjack over Illinois when he got an Iris message from Chiron detailing the situation at hand; reluctantly Percy agreed to delay his donut stop to assist the Avengers. He should be pumped about the situation, right? I mean, he had just learned that all his childhood heroes were _real_. Instead; he felt like the entire moment hadn't climaxed. Yeah, Steve Rodgers was strong, a good fighter, fairly attractive from a certain angle; but he seemed to be struggling with Percy's existence.

"So, you're a child of Poseidon," Steve asked in a queer voice.

"Yeah man, I've told you that five time, " Percy urged.

"But after the war, the big three swore on the river Styx they wouldn't have children anymore; we're too dangerous."

"As if that would stop them," Percy laughed to himself. "There aren't a lot of us, but you may meet a few. Before I came to camp, there was a girl named Thalia, she was a daughter of Zeus. Long story short, lightning dude turned her into a tree, later on she was resurrected by the Golden Fleece. Jason Grace, her brother, is a child of Jupiter."

"Jupiter? The roman god?" Steve appeared to be physically chewing his thoughts. "How did.."

"I'm not even going there, but he can fly around and summon storms and do some pretty cool stuff. He's a stickler for following the rules, I have a feeling you two would get along just fine," Percy babbled, turning back to see Steve giving him a piercing glare that could break glass. "Um, not that there's anything wrong with following rules..."

"Are there any other children of Poseidon?" Steve switched the topic.

"Well, I have a half brother named Tyson, he's awesome, and a Cyclops!" Percy enthused. "Other than him, not any at camp. Nico di Angelo is a child of Hades-"

"There's a child of Hades _living_ in the camp?" Steve began to object Percy began speaking in a calm demeanor.

"Nico is fine, after the war in the 40's, Hades took a leave of absence from Olympus. A couple years ago there was this massive titan war and Hades sort of sided with us. Ever since then, he hasn't done anything to make us see him or his offspring as a threat. You and Nico have more in common than you'd guess."

Raising an eyebrow, Steve hesitantly question how it was possible that a child of Hades, the god whom had fought against the Allies in WWII, could be allowed into camp, let alone accepted.

Percy proceeded to fill in Steve on the details on how Nico's mother had moved to America with him and his sister Bianca di Angelo. After her unfortunate death (Percy left out the fact that it was Zeus that murdered her), Nico and Bianca had been trapped in the Lotus Hotel and were only brought out recently; in a sense, Nico had also been frozen in time.

"He would be in his early 90's now," he finished.

The Captain pondered this, his face remained unreadable. Percy tensed; the last thing he wanted was to reignite a long buried feud because some fossil decided to hold onto some ridiculous prejudice. Still, if Percy had been in Steve's shoes, he could sympathize with his hesitancy.

"I swear, Nico's a good guy. Seriously, you two should hang out," Percy suggestion came out sounding like _Please don't kill me for saying this_.

"98."

Percy knit his eyebrows together and pivoted towards Steve.

"What?" He asked curiously.

"I'm 98," Steve affirmed. "You're right, he and I do share something in common."

Percy redirected his eyes to the open sky, letting a small smile creep across his face. He only hoped Nico's reaction would be as positive as Percy had described him to be; after all the guy could be a little standoffish at times.

About an hour later, Percy glanced down to see the clouds parting and water pooling into the beginnings of the ocean; they were almost at camp. If he focused, he could see the outline of Long Island and the detailing of the trees that decorated the edge of camp. Below him, a taxi cruised at a rapid pace, which he deducted to be Bucky and Sam being escorted via Gray Sisters. Percy had once experienced the privilege of being a passenger in their car; he wasn't envious of those boys.

The shoreline grew closer and closer, and Percy felt his passenger's weight shift on the pegasus.

"Are those strawberry fields?" Steve asked.

"Yeah, what did they grow when you guys were here?"

"They grew strawberries, just a lot less. How many campers do you have?"

Percy shrugged. "Couple dozen, depends on the year and season. However it is the beginning of summer camp this week, so I expect there to be around one hundred during the summer."

"One hundred?" Steve exclaimed. "That's incredible!"

"How many were at camp when you were there?" Percy questioned.

Steve squinted his eyes in concentration.

"The camp itself was fairly new, so I'd say about a dozen were present. Bucky and I were among the first recruits. However when the war begun, they started sending out those whom they believed were equipped to fight. Bucky was at the camp for only a few months before Chiron sent him off," his words were coated with nostalgia. The way Steve spoke, it sounded as if he was asking himself a question of his existence opposed to stating a truth.

"Chiron just let you leave? Normally we had to be assigned a quest before we go; unless we only attended in the summer," Percy scoffed in disbelief.

"It was no act of glory," Steve reprimanded, "we had little training, but more than some, Chiron was left with no choice but to send them out. Zeus threatened to shut down the camp if we didn't provide soldiers for the cause," the last part of his story came out almost inaudibly. He seemed to slump with the volume of his voice, embodying the heavy truth of his words. The moment passed quickly and he straightened up and stared blankly below at the camp.

His words invited no more talk; Percy couldn't blame the guy. Captain America had been through a lot, and Percy supposed he generally didn't appreciate people trying to get past his walls. He made a mental note not to over step onto Steve's personal life.

The sound of crashing waves filled Percy's ears and the scent of salt water mixed with sweet strawberries wafted up to greet him. He could make out the beginnings of camp, including the Big House, the campfire, Zeus's Fist and the cabins where all the demigods.

A shimmering figure appeared in front of Percy, and an elfish looking boy grinned mischievously at Percy. His unkempt brown curls drooped into his crazed eyes, grease stains accented his dark face.

"Hey man, what was the hold up? You were expected to be at camp around 11:00, it's nearly 3:00 - woah, is that Captain America?" Leo's expression turned into pure shock.

"In the flesh," Steve beamed at Leo; Percy assumed the guy was used to men and women alike gawking at him.

"I read all your comics!" Leo waved his hands frantically in a childlike manner, unaware that his nose was on fire.

"Um, Leo," Percy coughed, dusting his own nose.

Leo's eyes gradually shifted down to his nose. In a frenzy, he patted it out and attempted to regain a laid back attitude.

"Yeah, so, we clear for landing?" Percy continued.

"All clear Captain, er, Percy, er" Leo stuttered. "I'm going to shut up now."

The Iris message dissolved leaving Percy to sit in silence. Then Steve erupted with laughter.

"You know, I've seen a lot of bizarre reactions, but did he actually accidentally light himself on fire?" The sheer amazement on Steve's face took Percy aback.

"Yeah, it's kind of his thing when he gets nervous," he smirked.

Steve shook his head, chuckling.

"If you thought that was bad, I'd stay away from the Demeter girls; if they get too agitated, you may end up 50 feet above ground tangled in vines," Percy advised.

"Noted," Steve nodded, his face seemed a lot more relaxed than it had been a few minutes ago. Percy decided maybe this over glorified Zeus's boy may not be so bad.

They descended into camp, landing on a tarmac which the Hephaestus and Athena kids at designed. Since the war against Gaea, there had been some new regulations and buildings put in place; more kids meant more need for safety. Percy wasn't one for rules, but he did admit it was nice to have a specific place for the pegasi to land, that way you weren't always having to watch your head in case an inexperienced flyer decided to accent you with a nice hoof print in the back of your skull.

Percy dismounted Blackjack and took a few sugar cubes from out of his jean pocket and fed them to the horse.

 _Thanks Boss, although you still owe me those donuts you promised me._

"And you'll get them," Percy assured. He turned to Steve, who was already in a coma state of mind, apparently lost in thought.

"Steve, sir?" Percy waved his hand in front of the absent minded Avenger.

Steve snapped back into focus and directed his attention to Percy.

"I have no idea what the reaction of the campers may be," he began "but if it's anything like Leo's, well, keep a smart head on."

Steve smirked and reached for his shield, lowering it into a defensive position.

"For precaution," he grinned.

Percy snickered and started walking.

"Come on, I can probably sneak you around the main part of camp to meet your friends before you're annihilated by the local fan girls."

"I'll follow your lead, you know this better than I do," Cap said while brushing a pine tree branch away with his shield.

"Also one more thing you should know about camp," Percy paused and regarded Steve, his face serious. "Campers are of all ages here; we have some as young as seven and others in their forties. We realized that demigods needed a safe house no matter their age, so last year we began building cabins away from the main area of the camp. It's been working so far, but unfortunately we don't have enough housing for everyone; you'll most likely be living with the other children of Zeus."

Before Steve could ask any more questions, Percy quickened his pace and darted around trees, trying to hide himself from the view of campers. They made it to the edge of camp and waited at the crest of Half-blood Hill. It was just a few moments before Percy could make out the shapes of two male figures walking toward them. A pair of shadows cast downward as the pegasi and their riders made their decent into camp. When Percy pivoted his head, he was greeted by a sick looking Sam and a dazed Bucky.

"Never, again," Sam breathed as he collapsed to the ground.

"Are we dead?" Bucky steadied himself on Steve's shoulder.

Steve shoved Bucky in the arm playfully and helped Sam to his feet.

"Are you okay?" Steve asked Bucky, his eyes full of concern.

"I just need to be on stable ground for a while," Bucky replied sending Cap a reassuring smile.

Percy crossed his arms and rolled his eyes.

"If you three are done with your tender bromance, we have to get to Tony and Bruce before the camp riots."

The three exchanged a look that Percy couldn't quite make out, but they came to a silent agreement that it was best to go to the others. Percy took the cue and escorted the men over to the tarmac. Thankfully, Tony and Bruce had enough common sense to stay put.

"Alright, so one problem remains," Percy strained his brain to come up with some amazing plan to explain to the rest of the campers why the Avengers would show up and join them. "I have no idea how to integrate you guys."

Tony cocked his head and straightened his body, confidence radiated off this guy.

"Simple, we march in like we own the place," he claimed, proceeding to walk past the stables and into the middle of camp.

"Tony!" Steve yelled in frustration, chasing after his friend. Bucky and the others followed.

Percy threw his head back and exclaimed "Why me?" to the open sky, then stumbled after them. He briskly passed the Armory and strode into the area by the Arena. All eyes were fixated on the Avengers. Tony stood paralyzed, awkwardly waving his hand, and Steve shook his head. In front of them grew a swarm of campers; their expressions were mixed awe, confusion and hyperventilation.

From one of the corners of the group, a blood curdling scream echoed throughout camp.

"Is that Bucky Barnes?" an Aphrodite camper pushed her way forward; others picked up on her lead.

Percy glanced over his shoulder and saw Bucky's face grow pale and stepped behind Steve who promptly raised his shield.

"Gentlemen, prepare to meet your worst nightmare," Percy alluded. "Fangirls."


	4. A Warm Welcome

_The response I've received is overwhelming, seriously you guys, you rock. Also, I know that Bucky's eyes in the comics are brown, but since I am basing my own mental picture of Bucky after Sebastian Stan, I've decided to go with blue for the sake of the story. That clarification aside, do proceed!_

Dodging a bullet sent shivers up your spine, hitting a target emitted pulses of adrenaline; jumping off a several story building while being target number one was rush, but evading an impending wave of fangirls was by far the most high stress situation Bucky had ever found himself in.

After their unplanned arrived at Camp Half-Blood, the Avengers had found themselves in the spotlight of several young audience members. Some didn't know who they were, but those that did were shocked to say the least. Then there were the fangirls; upon laying their eyes upon their favourite heroes, they decided their logical course of action would be a _welcoming_ chase.

"Yeah, I'd start running about now," Percy warned.

Bucky and Steve, whom had stood beside each other numerous times in intense combat, exchanged a look which seemed to communicate a new form of despair; some of these girls were their sisters!

"Split up!" Steve shouted, breaking away from the others in the direction of the cabins. Tony's eyes widened and he shuffled to the edge of the stage in an attempt to coax the ladies into _gently_ greeting him. Bruce and Sam locked eyes and bolted towards the strawberry fields.

The ex-assassin had nearly given himself whiplash the moment the first group surged towards him, like starved lions catching a glimpse at wounded prey. His body coursed with adrenaline, his muscles rippled as each contact with the soft earth propelled him forward, racing down the hill toward the crowded north forest.

He recalled his training from the trainers at Hydra; keep your mind focused on your target, don't let anything break your concentration, or else your mission is terminated. What was his focus here? The entire situation seemed comical; a Russian-American mass murderer being pursued by teenage and young adult women. Some guys wouldn't have a problem with that, but all Bucky wanted was to have a little time to himself and not have pity shoved down his throat. Brainwashed or not, the actions which his body had preformed had caused what felt like a second soul to be cast onto his body.

Bucky shook his head as he soared across a small creak, his boot slid across the mud as he twisted his torso toward a wall of brambles which guarded a thicket on the edge of the woods. He narrowed his eyes; he became like a hawk, concentrating all his energy onto that small gap. He trust his arm out in front of him and leapt; twisting his body in mid air, he skimmed across the brambles with only a few tendrils grazing his black t-shirt and jeans. He rolled across the forest floor and darted his piercing blue eyes backwards, estimating how much time before they caught up to him.

His head pounded, running scenarios of how to escape combined with rising emotions from his past. Often he found his present and past merging together resulting in paralyzing anxieties. Whenever the urge to fight came, his emotions drained and he was a fraction away from become the Winter Soldier; a customizable villain.

 _That's not me, I don't do that anymore_. Bucky's face returned to his stone cold expressionless stare; the default mask he adorned whenever it hurt too much to feel. Every day he wore the death of his victims and of his old self. In the last few years, guilt had become less of an emotion and more of a permanent scar on his heart.

The shriek of a girl scraping her skin on a bramble was enough to kick start Bucky; his abilities as a child of Hermes kicked into gear. By nature, they had the instinct of thieves, and thieves knew the best hiding spots. Within seconds, Bucky spotted a slight dip in the earth near the base of a willow tree. He directed all his energy to his legs and bolted with the speed of a hare, twisting and turning between bushes so the girls would lose sight of him.

He arrived at the base of the tree, and as he had predicted, the dip was what appeared to be a small hole; leaning down for a closer examination, Bucky determined it was the lip of a cave.

The thundering and squealing grew closer; that was enough persuasion to convince Bucky that even if this cave contained some hidden monster, it was the better option than being _consoled_ by a group of fanatic women.

He slid into darkness, letting the scent of musk and mildew overwhelm his senses, the downward motion came to an abrupt halt about ten feet down. He leaned on the muddy earth, breathing in the scent of dirt and dried leaves which had been hidden away from the golden touch of summer. Bucky observed the slim crack of light which shone into his hideaway. Shadows passed briskly, excited murmurs seeped into the walls of the cave, although the words were too muffled for Bucky to make out.

He lay still, waiting for what seemed like hours but were mere minutes. The talking quieted and movements passed after a while; Bucky decided to check up on Steve. He touched his communicator which rested in his ear.

"Steve," he whispered cautiously. "Are you alive? Please tell me you didn't fly another plane into the ocean."

Silence for a moment, followed by the crackling of static. Following that, a familiar voice sounded over the other end of the channel.

"Sorry, er, I'm a little hung up right now," Steve's voice sounded embarrassed.

"What happened?" Bucky said, instinctively standing up and clenching his fist as if to fight.

"Promise not to laugh?" Steve pleaded.

Bucky rolled his eyes, but a smile inched across his face.

"Promise," he agreed.

"Percy was right about those Demeter girls," he confessed. "They grew a cluster of vines and ensnared me pretty quick."

Bucky cupped his hand over his mouth, struggled to hold back a wave of laughter. He cleared his throat and managed to say,

"You were captured by flower girls?"

Even though he couldn't see Steve's face, Bucky was positive that it would be his non-humourous glare (which Bucky had caught him practicing in the mirror).

"Wait, I thought you said you were _hung_ up?" Bucky questioned.

"I'm on top of the climbing wall, you better get your butt over here," Steve threatened. "Watch the lava."

Bucky spread his arms in a sarcastic manner.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world, Rodgers," he joked.

About a half hour later, Bucky had made his way from the forest all the way to the edge of the climbing wall, undetected for the most part. A few campers had seen him, but they ignored him; so far, those were Bucky's favourites.

He found himself starring upward at the climbing wall, a massive structure with lava pouring down the sides of it, rocks strategically placed according to skill level on each side. At the top stood a very embarrassed looking Steve Rodgers; dressed up as Lady Liberty.

Bucky collapsed on the ground and howled.

"Not funny, now come up and untie me!" Steve demanded furiously.

"They did _that_ to you? How did they even get close enough to you? You're freaking Captain America?" Bucky rose, shaking his hands to mimic a stage performer.

"They used magic!" Steve exclaimed. "It wasn't a fair fight!"

Stifling his laughter, Bucky scaled the lava wall, whipped out his pocket knife and proceeded to slice the vines off of his friend's body.

"Okay, these are pretty thick vines," Bucky admitted, his eyes shone teasingly.

"Yeah, I'm aware," Cap said flatly.

"I see you've made yourself acquainted with the climbing wall, so to speak," Chiron spoke calmly as he walked into the clearing.

"Where have you been?" Steve beseeched.

The centaur strode to the base of the wall, his arms folded against his chest as he observed the work of the Demeter girls.

"I don't know whether to congratulate them or scold them," Chiron chuckled. "Either way, we'll worry about that later, right now I want to have a meeting with all of you in the Big House."

Bucky nodded, cutting the last of the vines off of Steve. Steve threw off the Lady Liberty crown and torch and exchanged them for his jacket which lay nearby.

"Not a word of this to Tony," Steve sternly instructed.

"Got it boss," Bucky beamed, sarcasm plastered across his dazzling smile.

After the ruckus calmed down, all the Avengers rendezvoused at the Big House, along with the Cabin leaders. Chiron began with a brief introduction, explaining a bit of what the Avengers had been up to the last few years and how the integration of demigods into the mortal world had worked.

"It began in WWII when we were forced to send out demigods for the greater good, however after the war was won we agreed it was best to keep to ourselves for the sake of mortals. More threats grew over the years, and it became apparent the monsters were going rampant, even threatening mortals. Therefore, S.H.I.E.L.D was established, a clever plan formed between Bruce Banner and Athena to protect demigods and mortals alike from the destruction of monsters and myths. It was meant to be kept secret from all, even some of the minor gods. When more and more monsters kept appearing, the comics depicting the Avengers became insufficient; mortals began to question what was really happening. So stage two took initiative; MCU- the Marvel Cinematic Universe, designed to disguise the true nature of the Avengers," Chiron explained.

"If it was so well planned, then why are they here now?" Malcolm Pace, the second in command Athena counselor inquired.

"I'm sure you're aware the plans are meant to be an guideline, they need to be adaptable," the centaur continued. "As of recently, their presence has become phenomenal, mortals and monsters alike can recognize them in a heartbeat, their cover up stories are weak and mass produced; in essence, we are losing the goal of what we set out for. I have discussed the matter with Olympus and the gods were in unanimous agreement; until things settle down in the mortal world, the Avengers are to remain here as regular campers."

Protests from Avengers and demigods alike sparked in the room, Bucky remained silent, observing the reactions of everyone. Perhaps it was an old habit, but it allowed him to see the bigger picture, to gain insight to see what course of action must happen.

"Enough!" Steve boomed, slamming his shield into the dining table; Chiron flashed him an unimpressed look.

"Chiron's right, we've been too careless, we need to give the mortals some breathing space," the Captain agreed.

"I suggested the same thing a few years back, although when _I_ suggested it, it apparently was a horrific thing to even mention!" Tony chided. "The only difference is that before it was the UN, now it's our absent parents; do you really think _they_ would help us more than an active organization?"

"It's not like that Tony," Steve spoke firmly. "The difference is that demigods understand what we are capable of and can draw a realistic line; the UN would have deemed us all freaks of nature, and I've had enough specimen studies for my days."

"You're just saying that because you couldn't see then what you see now! That we are dangerous!" Tony threw his hands up in exasperation.

"Both of you, calm down," Chiron boomed, slamming his hoof on the floor. "This is a temporary arrangement, and a non-negotiable one at that. I will not have disagreements based upon some silly thesis of control."

Everyone remained silent, the air charged with emotion. Bucky studied Steve's expression which was aimed aggressively at Tony. Although they had managed to live peacefully, the touchy subject of power had created a rift between the two of them.

Leo Valdez coughed and raised his hand.

"So, they are going to be living with us in our cabins?" Leo appeared calm, but Bucky could see that there were flames licking out the bottom of his pant legs, apparently _chill_ was not an easy state for Leo to come to.

"Yes, as of right now I ask each of the cabin leaders whom will be overseeing an Avenger to escort them to their bunk; no shenanigans."

"Gotcha Chiron, shenanigans are a no-go," Leo beamed, tossing a pencil around in his hands.

Everyone began to disperse; Bruce went with Malcolm toward the Athena cabin. Leo grabbed Tony's hand which Tony slapped away in disgust; Leo brushed it off and began to babble about the wonders of the Hephaestus cabin as they exited the house. Bucky saw Sam talking with a tall curly blond haired guy whom he recognized as Will Solace from the Apollo cabin.

"I guess this is home for a while," Steve stated, walking up to Bucky.

"Yeah, I guess. It's weird being back, so much has changed," he murmured. That sentence came out of his mouth too often for Bucky's taste.

"All part of our roles as demigods I suppose," Steve sighed, a tall blond guy came up to him at that moment and introduced himself as Jason Grace.

"I'm technically the cabin leader, although I alternate between here and Camp Jupiter," he explained. "Are you ready?"

Steve patted Bucky on the shoulder, then followed Jason Grace.

Bucky frowned, he had become accustomed to looking out for Steve; often he could hear his friend whenever he had nightmares. Now that they would be in different buildings, Bucky promised himself to check on Steve as often as he could see his friend.

While Bucky was distracted, a boy with bright blue eyes and messy curly brown hair bounced up to Bucky.

"Hey, I'm Connor Stoll, ready to meet the rest of your siblings?" He said, his tone hinted at hidden agenda. His appearance was untrusting in a mischievous manner; unpredictable and wild. Bucky compared himself to him; besides their eye colour, they had almost nothing in common at all.

"C'mon man, they'll love you! I mean, _the Winter Soldier_ is our brother, how epic is that?" Connor prompted, obviously impressed with the title which had haunted Bucky.

"Yeah, pretty _epic_ ," Bucky waved jazz hands sarcastically.

"Just, watch your arm when you walk in, I told Travis to turn off the magnets on the doorframe, but there's always a chance he forgot," he forewarned. "We installed them so if any visitors came, we could lighten their load just a tad."

Bucky blinked in disbelief. Magnets on doorframes calculated to accomplish theft. This was going to be an interesting summer.


	5. Midnight Wanderer

_Bit of a shorter one, thanks for all the feedback! I love hearing your suggestions for development of plot and characters. The next chapter may take a bit of time to work out, so please be patient; in the meanwhile, sit back and relax Tony and Leo starring in this chapter._

* * *

After a week of sleep being interrupted by the clunking of gears, screeching of whistles and whiffs of tar drifting throughout the bunker; Tony had decided he officially _hated_ being in the Hephaestus cabin.

The moon reflected across the glossy steel walls into his eyes, the grinding and whirring of mechanical parts shifting in the basement below filled his ears with an unwelcome lullaby. The other children of Hephaestus seemed to have no regard for personal space, as there were wrenches, hammers, circuit boards and other miscellaneous junk scattered along the floor.

At the moment, he had a bunk to himself near the front door; across from him normally slept Leo Valdez, whom at the moment did not appear to be in his bunk.

Tony tapped on his watch and a hologram of the current hour appeared in the dimly lit room. _4:45_ _A.M._ Tony groaned and pulled his blanket over his head; how much longer would he have to endure living with teenagers. His thoughts drifted back to his tower; his own space, everything neatly put in order, Jarvis to assist his every need. He had every tool he could want; every piece of technology at hand and thanks to their own agenda, it had all been stripped away.

He pushed off the blanket and sat up on his bed, rubbing his hands through his short brown hair. His eyes looked at the door, tempting an idea of a early morning walk. Technically there was a curfew, but Tony never cared much for technicalities. He grabbed a light brown sweater and threw it over his nightshirt as well as slipping on his black sneakers. With immense stealth, he tiptoed to the cabin's metal door and opened it as quickly and quietly as a metal door could be opened. Slipping outside, he shut the door behind him and breathed in the fresh night air.

"Screw it all," he lifted his head, stretching his arms wide and venturing off into the woods. Why the woods? Tony didn't know, as someone who reveled in the newest and greatest technology, all the _go green_ and _save the world_ talk seemed like background noise to him. Not that he didn't like nature nor see its benefits, it's just that the company of mechanics and shiny objects consoled him more so than grass and dirt.

After perhaps a half hour of walking, Tony took in his surroundings; he had never ventured to this area of the forest before, the path had seemed to appear before him. He turned around and saw bushes masquerading his trail. Alarm pulsing through his blood, he stumbled back in surprise, only to find the ground tilting in a slant. The mud cushioned his fall as he rolled down the hill. When Tony looked up, the path he had been on was completely erased; cloaked by some bushes which he was certain hadn't been there prior to his tumble.

"Fantastic," he griped, examining the mud which was plastered across his clothes. He tried to clean himself, but it continued to spread.

Frustrated, cold, mucky and now lost, Tony lay on his back, staring hopelessly at the treetops.

"Take a break, he said," Tony mumbled. "It'll be good, he said. Huh, yeah sure, send the great Tony Stark to be eaten by monsters instead of cancelling a few press conferences and chilling in a hot tub."

A twig cracked to his right and Tony shot up, scanning his surroundings for the new visitor. Before his eyes could fully register, a black movement swooped in at Tony and clasped it's hand over his mouth. Tony let out a muffled cry; his attacker had a frightening appearance. He wore soot covered goggles, ripped gloves, a grease stained top and his hair was tied back with a bandana.

"Hey man, what are you doing out here?" the figure said, stepping back into the moonlight. It was Leo Valdez, Tony's half brother and cabin counselor. "You know, you aren't supposed to be out here right? Especially at this hour," he pulled a wrench out from his tool belt and tossed it between his hands.

"Same could be said for you, what the heck are you doing out in a muddy forest before daylight?" Tony demanded, lifting himself to his feet.

"I asked first Metal Dude," Leo grinned.

"Don't call me that," Tony scoffed.

"Fine, touchy. I'm working on a project, hence, err, all of this," he motioned up and down at his current attire. "Now what's up with you?"

"Couldn't sleep, so I went for a walk," Tony shrugged.

Leo starred at him in curiosity; he walked up to Tony and examined him like a scientist would study a subject. Tony's face twisted in disgust, shoving Leo away who simply beamed.

"I take it this is your first time in the area of the forest," he deduced.

"Good job Sherlock," Tony grumbled.

"I can get you back to the cabin, but first," Leo's face evolved from crazy to diabolically demented. "Wanna see something _awesome?_ "

Every instinct in Tony screamed _run_.

"Sure!"

Leo motioned for Tony to follow him. The two trekked through moonlit bushes until they came to a small part of the forest where a cleverly disguised bunker lay. Leo walked up to it and hit his wrench against the stone in a pattern that seemed to resemble Morse code. The stone creaked and groaned and opened up; a faint light glowed in the entrance.

"Welcome to Bunker 9," Leo proudly extended his arms ahead of him, inviting Tony into the cave.

Tony stepped forth and was overcome in wonder; the Hephaestus cabin was intense, but compared to this, that place was a toy chest. The bunker was a cavern of technology and mechanics; columns of fire lit the room, grease and oil speckled over the tools. In one corner was a stack of what looked like rejected projects, another pile opposite seemed like miscellaneous parts ready to be assembled. Mechanical suits of armor stood against steel beams, like suits of armor in a castle. Workbenches were piled high with blueprints, scraps of metal, springs, glue, wires and things which Tony couldn't recognize. The focal point of the room however, would be the massive bronze dragon which appeared to be sleeping in the middle of the hall.

"Don't worry about Festus, he just needs a little bit of recharging," Leo marched passed him and tapped the machine on its head.

"Not bad," Tony attempted to sound less impressed than he was. How could a guy in his early twenties work with technology that was more advanced than Tony, one of the best inventors of all time, could never have seen. He made a mental note to add _dragon_ to the list of upcoming inventions from Stark Industries.

"Yeah, it was built during the Civil War, abandoned for several years until yours truly discovered it. Now the Hephaestus cabin uses it to make weapons, tech and other handy stuff for the good of the camp," Leo explained while punching some numbers into a calculator.

"Hmm," Tony filed his fingers across some blueprints; the ideas which his siblings concocted were borderline insanity; Tony respected it.

"So what have you dragged me here for, other than to brag," he asked.

Leo, who was now on top of Festus, slid down and grabbed a small device which imitated a tablet, only decades more advanced. After a few strokes on the touch screen, a hologram appeared between Tony and Leo.

"Festus is already cool, but I want to make him incredible, what you see here are my current upgrade plans," Leo detailed what Festus's abilities were at the moment and how he wished to improve them.

"Just imagine, a flying dragon capable of camouflage, orbiting space and even firing tracking missiles," Leo exclaimed, throwing his idea out to Tony.

"I can, and it's ludicrous."

"So you'll help me?"

"Absolutely," Tony grabbed a pair of gloves and shoved them over his rough hands. "Where do we begin?"


	6. King of the Hill

"Sam! Sam wake up!" Will poked Sam's face repeatedly.

"We've got patrol with the Athena cabin, if we're late, they will roast us in tonight's King of the Hill!" he urged, running out the front door.

Sam blinked, sunlight streaming into his eyes. He's been at Camp Half-Blood for about three weeks now and was settling into life here pretty well. Each day had a routine, but something surprising always seemed to happen. Last week, Sam had the pleasure of seeing Cap's butt get whopped by Clarisse in the arena; after being defeated by Ant-Man a few years before, the opportunity to rub this in Cap's face was too good to pass up. A few days later, a half visible dragon had paraded through camp, terrorizing the campers as they watched a frantic Leo and Tony sprinting after it in dismay.

"The _blue_ wire, I said the blue wire!" Tony roared.

"I thought you said _not_ blue!" Leo replied, barrelling past Sam.

Ah yes, camp life was the good life.

Sam chuckled to himself and threw off his covers. He grabbed a pair of running shorts and a red t-shirt and strolled to meet the rest of the morning patrol.

Malcolm was detailing the course in which they would survey today as Sam stopped by Bruce's side.

"Hey, sleep well?" Sam whispered, starring ahead at Malcolm.

"Could've been worse," Bruce muttered in reply.

The two of them had never been the closest of friends, but since coming to Camp Half-Blood, Sam had observed Bruce shying away from the others more than normal. He spent a lot of time wrapped up in books and new tech, occasionally lending a hand to Tony and Leo on their dragon project. Working with those two, Sam imagined, would be nothing but infuriating. He respected Bruce's ability to control his anger, even under such straining circumstances. Bruce and Chiron had been spending an obscene amount of time together, perhaps it was because Chiron was on the of few people here who could help nurture Banner's desire to live peacefully in this world.

"Alright, meet back here in an hour to report. Break!" Ordered Malcolm, officially dispersing them.

The day progressed, patrol passed swiftly without interference and Sam found himself at archery. Being a child of Apollo, they were often naturally good at archery, but that was more Hawkeye's thing; Sam preferred his suit which was currently being repaired from a little mishap with a pegasus. In the meantime, he was stuck shooting exploding arrows at moving jars of greek fire. Seriously, who came up with these ideas?

Sam retracted the bow, the string pressed lightly against the corner of his lip. Once anchored, he adjusted his arrow to aim for the heart of the bouncing jar. He narrowed his eyes in focus, his senses flooding with observations from his environment. Then the string shot forth, the arrow zoomed past the jar and went _thwunk_ into a birch tree.

Sam cursed and reloaded his bow, rapidly releasing it without warning to the others. The jar instantly combusted, engulfing the area around it in green ominous flames.

"Target lit!" Will yelled, ushering two young demigods forth whom tossed buckets of water on top of the hungry fire, within moments it was extinguished.

Sam dropped his bow and sat down on a log nearby, rubbing his forearm where the string had seared his skin, leaving a stinging sensation.

"Hey, that was a good shot," Will's voice startled Sam. The blond guy sat down next to Sam and fiddled with his own bow.

"That wasn't skill, that was rage," Sam muttered, disgusted with himself. He wasn't an archer despite his parentage. He wasn't a healer either, he had tried to help Will find some mint leaves and fetched poison ivy by mistake.

"Not all children of Apollo are archers or healers, we have other talents too," Will tried to encourage him. Sam appreciated it but he laughed openly in front of his counselor.

"Yeah, I'm sure I will haiku all my enemies into the brink of the abyss."

"Have you ever heard one of Apollo's haikus?"

"That bad huh?"

Will stood up and cleared his throat and mimicked his father's voice.

"I am so hot son, I fly my red chariot, Sam, I am your father."

"Wow, was that an original," Sam smirked.

Will did a playful bow.

"Work in progress."

"Thanks for cheering me up man, those haikus could come in handy," Sam patted Will on the shoulder as he rose.

The announcement sounded for lunch and the boys headed up to the Mess Hall. As usual, fresh barbeque filled the air with a delectable aroma, traces of mashed potatoes, garlic bread and other scents wafted through the air. After filling his plate, Sam and the rest of the camps all got in line to sacrifice the best bits of their meal to their parent.

Behind him was Percy Jackson, otherwise known as a walking legend. Sam had talked with the guy a few times and he seemed to be a decent fellow. Although it always baffled him how this guy saved the world multiple times and yet appeared to be fairly average and laid back. Perhaps that was his secret; not to let this crazy reality get into his head, just ride with it.

Sam offered his barbeque and potatoes to Apollo, then returned to his seat.

After most of them were almost completely finished, Will opened up the subject of tonight's King of the Hill event.

"We are in good shape with the trades, but let's just say we can't afford to lose this one," Will stated.

"Wait, King of the Hill? Isn't that when one person stands on top and everyone else tries to knock them off?"

Will flashed him a white smile.

"Oh yeah, rooky over here. Basically instead of one guy verses all the other guys, the camp is divided by our cabins to compete to hold the top of Zeus's Fist. Smaller cabins such as Poseidon and Zeus are encouraged to join larger cabins for the sake of a fair advantage. Since he owes me a favour, Percy will be joining our team today." Will concluded.

Smiles and whispers of anticipation and excitement circled the table. Apparently the Son of Poseidon inspired hope even with the mention of his name. Sam rolled his eyes and sipped his water.

"Whatever man, as long as you don't put me on archery."

"Wouldn't dream of it," Will agreed.

Percy twirled his pen around his fingers as he sat on his bunk. In a few moments, the gong would chime and he would make his way to the edge of the forest where tonight's came took place. Moments like this were hard to find; tranquility with nothing to insane around. Percy sometimes had to pinch himself whenever there wasn't a monster swearing death upon him, or he and Annabeth got to have a "normal" conversation; if you counted discussing your future over blue cupcakes and orange juice as normal.

He smiled when he thought back to Camp Jupiter and the time he spent there. The school part was boring, but living a somewhat calm life with those whom he cared for was beyond special to him. He and Annabeth actually had date nights, like seeing movies and eating real food (not fiery Tartarus water). He actually had the chance to explore interests and possibilities that could form if he managed to avoid death for the next few decades.

The chiming of the gong cut off his train of thought, he thrust his pen into his pocket and began walking towards the game's starting point. A few minutes later, he found himself being placed in leather armor, standing beside Sam Wilson; a real life Avenger. Mind you, Percy thought Iron Man was kind of more awesome, but the dude could fly, that counted for something right?

"First time?" Percy asked, buckling up his braces. He knew that Sam was an experienced warrior of sorts, but camp games were different; magic was fair game and death wasn't an option. Restraint was sometimes harder than just blowing someone's head off; Percy knew that from first hand situations.

"Yeah, but I'm looking forward to it. Any tips?" Sam asked, strapping himself into his wings. Since the camp allowed magical items, Chiron deemed it acceptable to allow the Avengers to use their weapons. The only one whom the director had concerns for was Tony's suit, but Tony promised not to pulverize any campers; just the annoying ones.

"Team work, and don't try to be the hero," Percy advised.

Sam's brow furrowed.

"No offense, but aren't you the infamous Percy Jackson? You're kind of the hero around here."

Percy shrugged.

"Maybe in some people's eyes, but I can give you a long list who would disagree. Good luck Sam, watch my back will ya?"

"You got it boss," Sam smiled.

"Gods, you sound like Blackjack." Percy groaned, ruffling his hair.

Chiron appeared at the base of the rock pile.

"Alright, you know the rules; however I will repeat them so there can be no excuses. The goal is to keep your cabin fighting for the top, which ever cabin is at the top of the rock once the gong sounds ten minutes from now, they win that round. There is no killing, maiming, decapitating or any other means of torture allowed. Weapons are fair game, work as a team and have fun. Now to your positions."

The cabins split up and encircled the rock; each team started out about one hundred feet from the base of the rocks. Originally Zeus's Fist had only been a few feet off the ground, but the idea of turning it into a camp game opened the idea of expanding the size. Now it was about the size of a small skyscraper, complete with waterfalls, tunnels, cliffs and other fun obstacles. Chiron climbed down to the base of the rock and took his position next to Clarisse La Rue; arguably the best fighter at camp, but she sprained her ankle two days ago so she was sitting out and helping observe for foul play. Beside her stood Rachel Elizabeth Dare, while most of the time she was an average person (if you can consider her an average person) she occasionally spewed prophecies of impending doom upon campers; otherwise known as quests. Percy used to have a thing for her, but now they were just friends. He was slightly relieved these girls wouldn't be fighting today, as they were fierce both with words and weapons. The gong sounded and a battle cry arouse in a multitude of directions. Percy saw the Aphrodite campers being rallied by an amped up Piper McLean, hoards of metal clanked and whirred from the other side of the rock where the Hephaestus cabin was. Percy shuddered when he thought what kind of device they could have manufactured for this game.

"Time to rock n' roll," Sam shouted at Percy, he spread his wings and flew up towards Zeus's fist, Will and the other archers fired a dozen non-lethal arrows at each side of the flanks.

Percy uncapped Riptide which sprang to three feet of glowing celestial bronze. He locked his eyes on Zeus's fist, scanning for possible footholds amongst the swarm of campers.

"Right, here goes nothing," he dug his right foot into the ground and sprung forward, belted a battle cry while pushing several campers off the beginning ledges. He swung his sword and bunted the blunt of the blade into Connor Stoll's face. Connor threw a grenade shaped device at Percy's feet as he fell of the rock; the grenade turned out to be an exploding pile of soap which made the surface beneath Percy's feet slick. Percy fell a couple feet to the ground, landing on his side.

"Okay, new plan. Sam?" Percy called for his friend, a moment later Percy found himself airborne, manoeuvring his legs above campers whom were desperately trying to grab his shoes.

"Cheaters!" Travis Stoll called out, as he dropped a stink bomb on some Athena campers a few feet below him. Percy ignored him and looked ahead and saw movement ahead.

"Drop me here!" Percy shouted over the howling winds.

Sam nodded and released him, Percy braced his legs and landed on a narrow path. He plastered himself against the wall and dared to glance down. He had to be four stories up now, which meant one more to go. Above him he heard the voices of some Hephaestus campers, including Tony and Leo.

Percy crept slowly up the path, ducking behind stones and small shrubs. A shadow soared over head and quickly descended, Sam squatted next to him. Percy motioned for him to be quiet and pointed ahead where he had heard the voices. He squinted and saw Tony fully suited in his Iron Man suit, and Leo who was welding something into place.

"Are we good to go?" Tony urged, his hands flared causing him to rise off the ground.

"Good as gold!" Leo replied, lifting off his goggles.

Percy knew he couldn't let them accomplish whatever it was they wanted to do. He burst out of the bushes and full speed and jumped onto Tony, slashing his sword at his arm. Tony leaned backward and shot the sword out of Percy's hand with his thrusters and shot skyward.

"Sam!" Percy called, mentally reaching out towards the small stream which was near.

"On it!" Sam soared after him.

Leo ignited himself on fire and rushed at Percy.

"I want a hug!" He screeched in a childish manner.

Percy doused him in water and then embraced his fiery friend.

"I feel the love man, now if you will excuse me," Percy smirked, picking up his sword.

"No way Aqua Man, you are not advancing," Leo spread his arms across the path.

Percy readied his sword, he knew Leo couldn't beat him in combat, but he didn't like rubbing it in either. He prepared to advance when the sound of a small rocket sounded from above. Tony was zooming toward him Sam on his tail. The two of them were in combat, Sam firing his non-lethal pistols while Tony shot flares from his suit. The two dived and dodged, performing aerial routines that dizzied Percy's mind. They flew towards the top of the hill, and Percy pressed forward.

"Attack!" Leo cried, an army of miniature mechanical lizards surged forth from a tunnel that was to Percy's right. They hissed in an eerie metallic way that sent shivers up Percy's spine. He demanded for the water to wash them away but they kept streaming out. They began to crawl up Percy and hold him into place when a wave of arrows crashed down around him, obliterating the ones that were closest to him.

Will and the other Apollo campers rushed up toward Percy, pursued by Ares, Hermes and Demeter campers.

"Gotta move, now! They are close by!" Will said, firing his bow at the few that remained in the tunnel.

"Tunnel now!" Will ordered to the campers, then he looked at a few others and pointed at Leo.

"Restrain him?"

"How about no," Leo grinned and jumped off the cliff.

"Leo!" Percy shouted, but his face was nearly wiped off by a miniature Festus which rose directly in front of him.

"See you at the top Aqua Man!" He jeered playfully.

"Stop calling me that!" Percy complained.

"Percy!" Will called from the cave. Percy rushed in after his teammates.

The caves where imitated in the style of the labyrinth, they changed every game so you never knew where they lead; some lead to pools of water, some lead to traps, some lead to the top. Percy hoped for the later.

"Left!" Will ordered. The pounding of footsteps echoed throughout the caves as other cabins descended upon the tunnels, while Percy heard thumping overhead as others took the paths above.

"Split up!" Percy commanded, veering left into a earthy smelling tunnel. He remained silent and he moved forward. The dirt was dry and felt warm, a good indicator that sunlight may have been in here not too long ago. He caught a glimpse of some light ahead when a rainstorm of dirt collapsed in front of him.

Percy blinked, trying to rub the dirt out of his eyes. Sunlight clouded with dirt settled around the outline of Tony.

"You hit my suit," Tony said, raising his arm to blast Percy. "I don't like it when people do that."

"Not my fault old man," Percy replied, diving down and rolling towards him. He slashed his sword against Tony's legs, creating a narrow gash in the suit. Tony grabbed Percy and shoved him against the disintegrating tunnel wall, squeezing tightly. Percy gasped for air and then kicked his legs against Tony's chest, forcing him against the other wall. Percy freed Tony's grip and then concentrated on the streams above, beckoning them to assist him.

Sparks shot out of the gashes which Percy had made in the Iron Man suit, Tony wasn't impressed. He swung at Percy's head which Percy evaded, swinging Riptide at Tony's arm. Tony grabbed Riptide and punched Percy's stomach. A wave of nausea crashed over Percy as he fell on the ground. Tony stepped over him, his mask pulled back.

"You alright?" He asked, a slight glimmer of competence trickled over his face. He was enjoying this too much for Percy's liking.

Percy faked a moan and raised his hand as if he were surrendering. Tony's eyes gleamed and reached to help Percy up. Water gushed down from the surface of the tunnel, knocking Tony off his feet. Percy rolled out of the way and arched Riptide, stabbing furiously at Tony who was flailing in the water.

Tony leapt into the air, boosting himself to the roof the tunnel which was actively collapsing around them. He shot mini darts at Percy. A few penetrated Percy, they felt like wasp stings, hot and searing.

"You don't give up, do you?" Tony laughed, dodging a chunk of falling earth.

"Nope!" Percy grinned, he focused his energy on the water. The water spiraled around his ankles, hoisting him into the air. He was about to engage Tony again when the tunnel shuddered violently and began to crumble. Chunks of dirt began to bury the way Percy came in.

"Percy, grab my hand," Tony extended his arm to Percy. Reluctantly, Percy complied and grasped the metal hand.

They moved so quickly, Percy could barely keep straight what was up and what was down. The earth bombarded around him, dust coated his lungs, rocks rained on him. He closed his eyes to avoid debris entering his eyes, the motions around him became blurred as he lost focus on gravities pull.

Then sunlight warmed his skin, the dust cleared and Percy dared to open his eyes. He was falling toward the top of Zeus's fist.

"Tony!" Percy screamed angrily. He turned and saw Iron Man flying downward to fend off a few Ares campers who were giving the Hephaestus defenders a hard time.

Percy looked anxiously at the incoming earth, he tried to summon water but it wasn't responding quick enough.

A black figure appeared beneath him and Percy landed hard on its back.

 _Hey boss, glad to see me?_ Blackjack whinnied. Percy cracked a smile, the pegasi were part of safety protocol in case of situations such as this.

"Am I ever, drop me off at the top?" Percy suggested, observing Will and the others pressing the Hermes campers off the top.

 _You bet, and you still owe me that donut._ Blackjack reminded.

"Yeah, how about I talk to Connor after the games and get him to smuggle one in?" Percy promised.

Blackjack whinnied with enthusiasm and hovered near the surface of the top of the hill. Percy descended and bolted towards his teammates.

"Where have you been?" Will demanded, shooting an arrow into the breastplate of a Hermes camper.

"Held up by some dude with flying armor," Percy briefed, leaping at another camper.

"One minute left!" Chiron announced over some loud speakers.

"For Apollo!" Will cried, leaping over a fallen camper and punching another in the nose.

The last minute of the battle was a blur to Percy, his instincts sharpened, his vision focused and his weapon and body became one. At the end of the minute, Percy collapsed and surveyed the results of battle.

Campers lay exhausted yet with smiling faces. The numbers on the top of the hill were close together; the majority being Hermes, Hephaestus and Apollo campers. After a minute of tallying, Chiron whispered the results to Rachel who stepped forward to relay the final scores.

"Third place goes to the Hermes cabin," she stated. A whoop arouse from Connor who patted a miffed looking Bucky who had green goop stuck in his hair.

"In second place we have the Hephaestus cabin; nice job on the lizards!" Rachel applauded in the direction of Tony and Leo.

"Finally in first place we ha-" Rachel was cut short as her eyes became greener than usual and a mist spewed from her mouth.

"Steady her!" Will called to his siblings as they rushed towards her.

" _A mother's child lost in vain_

 _Bronze and iron awakens her pain_

 _Her vengeance breaks the sacred land._

 _The final lesson, a teacher's last stand."_

With that, Rachel collapsed into Will's arms.


	7. Repairing

Bruce collapsed into the office chair, rubbing his head in his hands.

"It's no use, none of the records or Sibylline books say anything about this prophecy," he worried.

Every since the Oracle had possessed Rachel and delivered a disturbing prophecy regarding bronze, iron, a vengeful mother and something about a final lesson, Bruce, Nico, Rachel, Chiron and Ella had been tearing apart every known text they had to gain some insight. Usually prophecies weren't a great sign of a bright future; they meant horror, war, possibility of death or worse; the last prophecy fulfilled was delivered a few years prior to when events begun to take place, but no one wanted to take a chance after nearly having the earth destroyed by Gaea.

"Ella likes words, Ella doesn't know these words," the harpy reported behind a wall of books she had been working through.

"Good work Ella, you're a huge help," Bruce encouraged, picking up a dusty copy of Camp Half-Blood records from 1934 and peeled back the cover.

"Guys, I'm pretty sure there is nothing we can do but look at the prophecy itself and figure out what we can, we've been at this for three days already," Nico groaned. His dark circles were more prominent than usual; next to Ella, he probably had been searching the longest. Bruce had confronted him about it and Nico had simply claimed he wanted to help. Bruce wondered if having the Avengers at camp made him nervous, especially Bucky and Steve who were from the same era as him. Nico seemed to skirt away from the men whenever they attempted to approach him; perhaps it was because it brought back memories too painful to remember.

"Nico's right, I mean, prophecies aren't fluid with time. It could happen eons from now," Rachel enthused, closing her book and sneezing. She brushed her flaming red curls out of her eyes and glanced out of the windows of the Big House. "I'm going to go to my cave, see if I can contact Apollo," she stood up and walked briskly towards the door.

"I wouldn't bother Apollo, Rachel," Chiron said calmed, trotting over to her and laying a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Unless it directly concerns them, they prefer to let us figure it out ourselves," his tone was melodic, full of warmth.

"Then what do you suggest we do?" Bruce urged, taking his glasses off and twirling them in between his fingers.

"Have patience, all will be revealed in time," Chiron instructed.

"Sounds like a fortune cookie to me," Rachel huffed, skipping out the front door and down the steps of the big house. Chiron watched her go, his face soft with sorrow.

Nico stood up and turned towards Ella.

"C'mon Ella, let's go see what Will is up to," he said, shoving his hands into his pockets.

"Ella follows, Ella likes Will, Will is nice to Ella," she flapped her wings and glided over to Nico and followed him out of the house.

Bruce stood up and made his way towards the door but Chiron blocked his way with his arm.

"I would ask you to stay for a moment Bruce, if you have no pressing engagements," the centaur's voice was fragile, as if it were about to shatter like glass.

"Yes, of course, anything," Bruce complied, leaning against the door. He studied Chiron, who seem to become more and more unnerved every second he was away from other campers.

"Chiron, what's wrong?" Bruce pressed calmly.

"I fear I have made a grave mistake in bringing you all here," he whispered in a barely audible volume.

Bruce looked over his shoulder at the camp, watching young demigods and creatures busying about their everyday business. Bucky and Steve were playing basketball with some demigods around their age on the court; Tony and Leo were somewhere in Bunker 9 working steadily on Festus and Bruce felt content spending time with Chiron and helping out where he could with his siblings. How could this be a mistake?

"The plan was to live in the mortal world, and if we grew too big, we come back here to cool off," Bruce stated. "We grew too big, you came and got us, we are waiting out the fire. What has changed?"

Chiron's aged eyes looked mournfully over the camp and met Bruce's eyes.

"I don't know, but what is done is done. You could all leave, but whatever has changed can't be undone," he walked outside onto the veranda.

Bruce walked up next to Chiron and lay a hand on the centaur's shoulder.

"Chiron you are an amazing director, no one doubts your judgment for a second; except Mr.D," Bruce reassured.

"Yes, well, Dionysus is still away on that errand Zeus gave him, who knows how long until he returns," Chiron appeared to be trying for a smile, but his voice was small.

"Do you miss him?" Bruce inquired.

The centaur stomped his hoof on the veranda and chuckled to himself.

"Yes Bruce, I do miss him. Despite his constant whining and groaning and attempting to break the rules set against him every second, I do miss the chap. He was strict, granted, but I did see change in him. That's the best part of being a director Bruce, seeing the opportunity for change in people and then nurturing them to see that change happen. It's incredible to look at students and see how they have matured throughout life. I've had a great honour in being a teacher to so many," Chiron reflected with a heavy sigh.

" With all due respect, I believe it is our honour to have someone like you teach us," Bruce smiled at Chiron. The centaur returned the smile and was about to say something when Bruce's communicator went off.

"You'd better get that," Chiron nodded in the direction of Bruce's pocket. "Thank you for talking Bruce."

"Anytime," Bruce promised. He descended the steps and hit the answer button on his communicator. A warbled version of Tony's voice sounded over the intercom.

"Bruce, hey, so now would be a great time to get your genius butt down to Bunker 9. Leo and I ran into the hiccup in Festus and, well, he is uh, well, just come see," Tony alluded. A crash echoed in the background.

"Tony! Heads up, the fire canon is malfunctioning again," Leo cautioned from somewhere nearby.

"Crap," Tony spat, the communicator screamed static for a moment and then Tony came back on the intercom.

"I'm on my way," Bruce reassured. "Just stay alive until I get there."

"Working with this guy, no promises," Tony cynically.

"I heard that!" Leo shouted overtop the clanging of metal raining down.

Bruce chuckled and turned off the communicator and ventured into the woods.

Leo forced the wrench to turn, grunting as he placed all his bodyweight on the bolt. The fire swarmed around him, and for the hundredth time, Leo was grateful his immunity to fire was a permanent asset of his.

He fished around in his tool belt and pulled out welding torch. Leo pulled down his welding mask and lit the torch ablaze. A moment later, a fiery rain of sparks accented the glow of the fire as he fastened the last bolt into place. Lifting his mask, he stepped out of the inferno to see Festus's frame red hot with fire.

A cold blast from the side shocked Leo's system. White mist encircled him and settled all over his body in a fine powder. He took in the new appearance of his clothes and flashed an irritated glare at Tony who stood a few feet away with a fire extinguisher in hand.

"Sorry," Tony shrugged his shoulders, an arrogant smirk plastered on his face.

"Dude," Leo rolled his eyes and attempted to dust off his clothes. "Not cool, I just did laundry this morning."

"Yeah, well, you nearly set me afire three times in the last half hour. This is preventive measures," Tony lay aside the extinguisher and exchanged it for a pair of protective glasses.

Leo opened his mouth for some mind-blowing comeback to grace his tongue, but the ashy taste of powder coated his mouth which resulted in him coughing instead. Great, not the epic redemption moment he dreamed of.

"Bruce should be here any moment, if anyone can work out the kinks in this coding, he can," Tony continued, picking up a tablet and swiping through files.

"I have to admit, he comes in handy," Leo agreed. Between Tony and Leo's minds, they were capable of many things when it came to engineering. So far they had installed a new GPS system that could show 3D visual charts up to ten meters above and below the street level, which came in handy for when they didn't have Hazel Levesque around to uproot celestial bronze for them. Another update was the live-missile tracking feature; Tony's favourite upgrade. They fired either lethal or non-lethal missiles and could track as far as ten kilometers on a moving target before it would waver. A handle full of comfort pleasures had been installed; cup holders that would keep your drink nice and warm, seat warmers, international radio and music on demand, Leo had even managed to install Netflix to play for when long trips in progress and Festus was on auto-pilot. All that remained to fix was a few lines of code that was messing with Festus's navigational systems; unfortunately it was giving both the Hephaestus boys quite a bit of trouble.

"When do you think we'll be able to take him out for a run?" Tony asked, rubbing his hands on an oil cloth.

Leo calculated whilst observing the overall appearance of Festus.

"Probably within the week, depending if Bruce can fix it."

"Bruce can fix it," a confident voice filled the vast cavern of Bunker 9. Bruce walked toward Festus and patted the bronze dragon on the nose. Even though he wasn't a child of Hephaestus, Bruce and the dragon got along swell; Leo felt a twinge of jealousy when Bruce could sometimes make connections that he couldn't, then he would reassure himself that it was him who resurrected Festus and befriended him, and there was no way that was just a coincidence.

Tony grinned at his friend and walked over to him, passing the tablet to him. The two of them chattered away about binary coding and the complications that Festus was having. Leo wandered over to them.

"- adjust the 3 to a 1 over here," Bruce punched in some code and number started running over the system. Festus went into full sleep mode as Bruce's fingers nimbly implemented new codes.

"What about the GPS?" Leo questioned.

"It will direct to override when manually instructed," Bruce explained, dragging a new file and trashing an old one. The three of them discussed the process as Bruce worked diligently. After two hours of constant coding, he walked up to Festus and lifted the control panel and plugged in the tablet.

"So, is your solution really what I think it is?" Tony doubtfully examined what Bruce was doing. "I would have replaced the code with something more elaborate, after all, this is a magically dragon."

Bruce removed his glasses and looked up at Tony.

"Elaborate gave birth to Ultron," he lectured gently. "We don't want a repeat of that; no offense Tony, but the world could do with something simpler."

Leo raised a brow in question, scanning the code.

"Hey, I might not be completely fluent on your level of geek, but won't something that plain be overridden easily?"

Bruce hit enter and Festus came to life, snorting happily. The control panel lit up like the fourth of July, gears whirled and bells whistled. The code ran throughout the system, sparking and chiming as it fell into place in the system.

"It's unlikely, if not impossible," Bruce responded hollowly, clicking away at the keyboard. "To complete an override would mean said person would need access to another magical device capable of rewriting code. The Archimedes sphere has a lock on the code, which I am guessing, not many people know how to operate."

"Got that right, I'm the one and only...plus Tony," Leo confidently gestured to himself, then grudgingly at Tony.

Tony shook his head in disbelief.

"How are you my brother?"

"I know, you are blessed."

"I would choose the word _cursed_ as the proper adjective in this case," Tony retorted.

"Gentlemen," Bruce interrupted, stepping away from the control panel. "I believe my work is done here."

Leo and Tony stopped arguing and stared at Bruce who stood with his hands in his pockets, humbly smiling at them. Bruce's communicator buzzed.

"Excuse me," Bruce hastened away from the men and toward the exit. "Let me know if something needs to be fixed," he offered as he walked out the door.

Leo and Tony remained still, marvelling at the dragon who was now fully operational, swinging his head from side to side, restless and ready for a ride.

"So now what?" Tony exclaimed in wonder.

Leo's eyes were alit with awe, his heart raced with anticipation. He donned his wildest grin and regarded Tony with a challenging gaze.

"Let's go for a ride."


	8. Joy Ride

"Leo, reduce the thrusters, we'll go over the Atlantic at this speed!" Tony screeched above the screaming winds.

The clouds swirled ferociously around Festus as they shot high into the late afternoon sky. Long Island was no longer visible to the naked eye and the state of New York itself was almost a distant memory. They ascended above the clouds, the sunlight shone brilliantly, casting a blinding light off of Festus into Tony's eyes.

"I'm only at 13%," Leo replied, his voice shrill and distant.

"Reduce to 10%," Tony tightened his grip on Festus and extended his arm toward the control panel. With immense force against wind, his fingers pushed down a lever and the entire acceleration slowed to a reasonable pace.

Leo slumped in his seat and shook his head wildly.

"That was insane!" he exclaimed.

Tony blinked repeatedly, sunspots dancing in his eyes.

"Yeah, insane, right," he agreed. He looked over the side of Festus. Below them were cars, farms and countryside whizzing past them.

"Woah, how far did we go?" Tony readjusted in his seat, pushing a few buttons into the panel.

"According to the GPS, we are somewhere above Massachusetts, heading northeast," Leo read off matter-o-factly. "Do you need to do anything back at camp, or do you want to continue our joyride?"

"Let's see what he's got," Tony spoke challengingly. He scanned the horizon, whips of clouds obscured sections of sky as the afternoon light grew dimmer. "Just mind the clouds, some of them look dodgy."

"Avoid dodgy clouds, roger that," Leo cracked a smile. Tony winced a little with pity; he and Leo didn't see eye to eye with everything, but they shared common knowledge on a few things. Pain was one of them; both of them had rocky living situations growing up which resulted in building a wall. Tony recognized in Leo the same walls that Tony had built for himself, walls of humour and confidence that masqueraded a broken individual. Tony pondered what Leo was truly like when no one was watching, did the smile disappear, or was his facade as much a part of him as Tony's attitude had manifested into his own personality.

He shoved the thoughts aside and tapped on his watch and called for the Iron Man suit. Within a few seconds, the metal pieces adorned Tony's body, snapping into place.

"I'll fly beside him, see that everything is okay on the body," Tony relayed, edging himself to the edge of the dragon.

"I'll be here for when you realize that dragon riding is much cooler than human suits," Leo teased.

Tony smirked at Leo and clasped his shoulder.

"You're alright Leo," he decided as he sprang off the dragon and into the open air.

"Would you desist with the blank stare?" Rachel snapped at Bucky, who was currently lost in his own realities.

Bucky shook his head and reconnected to the present, looking dazed up at Rachel who was standing over him with a disapproving frown stretched across her freckled face.

"Why do I even bother trying with you," she sighed, sliding a new slide onto the projector.

Bucky side-eyed Steve who was clearly struggling to stay awake as well.

Rachel had volunteered to teach the boys a little history when they got to Camp-Half Blood. Between saving the world numerous times and trying to rebuild their lives, Bucky and Steve were rather left in the dust when it came to recent history. After 1944, the only memories that filled Bucky's mind were the description of things he'd much rather forget.

"We're sorry Rachel," Bucky said dryly. "But I don't think that Postmodernism art is a major event in recent history that Steve and I need to be educated on."

Rachel looked physically hurt when those words made contact. She bit back her lip and stiffened herself, and unless his eyes deceived him, Bucky noticed she may be counting to herself.

"Okay, fair enough. Shall we move onto the Cold War in the 1980's," Rachel agreed, filing through a few slides and snatching a fresh one.

"Is this really all we did?" Bucky asked concerned.

Rachel observed him inquisitively. "Is what all we did?"

"Fight," he stated. "All we've learned about is how people fought for rights, fought each other, fought the government, governments fighting themselves. What's the point of it all?"

Rachel, who was usually quick to respond, chewed on her response.

"I don't know, " she confessed. She reached for the switch and flicked it off, the room became dark. Rachel walked over to the wall and turned on the lights, causing Steve to shoot up, blinking rapidly.

"Let's call it a day," Rachel decided, cleaning up her slides and shoving them into her denim bag. "Maybe we will continue when you two actually feel like learning." She opened the door of the Arts and Crafts building and briskly walked down the steps.

Steve's face twisted in confusion and leaned over to whisper to Bucky.

"Was it something I said?"

Bucky shook his head and stood up.

"No, I think it's something we didn't say," he concluded, heading towards the door. "I'll catch up with you later Steve."

"Alright, don't do anything stupid," Steve called in response.

Bucky turned his head around and smirked.

"Don't go using my lines against me," he teased warmly.

Steve let the cocky smile linger on his face until Bucky exited the building.

The evening air was cool and refreshing, the smell of warm earth filled Bucky's lungs. Campers were rushing about, some practiced swordsmanship while others sat on benches and tufts of grass, enjoying each other's company. Bucky searched the main area of camp for the redhead. He caught a glimpse of her fiery hair which was moving rapidly towards the back of camp.

"Rachel, wait," Bucky attempted to call but the noise of camp drowned any attempt he made. He hastened across the camp, weaving through campers as he pursued her. He made it to the edge of the amphitheatre where he saw her sitting at the edge of the stage. She sat with her legs cross, staring blankly at the ground.

"Rachel," Bucky said calmly. "I'm sorry if we upset you, it's just that it's a lot to take in."

Silence for a moment, but out came a faint response.

"I know."

Bucky strode down the amphitheater steps and walked over to her. He hoisted himself up next to her, keeping the space between them about an arm length.

"So, why the melodramatics?"

Rachel lifted her head and pulled in her legs so she could rest her head on her knees. Her curly hair cascaded down her back and blew gently in the evening breeze. Her face was solemn and serious, set in stone with deep thought.

"Because you were right," she spoke softly, keeping her gaze fixed on the ground. "All we do is fight, and we all know it. Nothing changes, nothing improves. Everyone and everything is lost to some fight, weather it was noble or not. I would hardly consider this to be melodramatic."

Bucky frowned. He had meant what he had said, he didn't like the endless circle of violence and the endless quest for peace which he knew always ended in a war; however the weight of his words he neglected to realize could be influential on others.

"Thank you," he whispered.

Rachel blinked.

"What?"

"Thank you," Bucky repeated. "for teaching us. For trying to help us get back to normal; it's a job that may be too big to accomplish; even for an oracle."

Rachel smiled a little. "The challenge isn't giving the lesson, it's making sure it sticks into those dinosaur brains of yours."

"Well a fossilized mind is awful good at preserving ideas," Bucky remarked.

"I don't know about that," Rachel challenged. She turned to him and slammed her hand on the stage. "Name the four Beatles."

"Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Ringo Starr, George Harrison."

"Who was the first man on the moon?"

"Neil Armstrong, July 16, 1969."

Rachel leaned back, satisfied with the responses.

"Not bad, Barnes."

"Well taught, Dare." Bucky said mockingly.

"Bucky! Bucky!" A shout in the distance grew at a rapid pace, streaming towards camp. Within seconds, Steve appeared at the top of the amphitheater in a state of concern mixed with horror.

"Steve?" Bucky asked, jumping off the stage and bounding up the steps.

"It's Tony and Leo," Steve breathed, he looked pale and shaken.

"Whoa, whoa, okay, Steve take a moment," Bucky instructed, grabbing his friend by the shoulders and guiding him towards the ground. "What's going on?"

Steve composed himself and then lifted a piece of paper to Bucky. On the paper was an inscription read " ... - ..." .

"Stark!" Leo frantically screamed as he punched the controls. The dragon was falling, rather, being dragged towards the surface at an alarming rate.

"Leo, I can't get to you!" Tony replied, his radio screeched feedback and then cut out completely. Between the spins, Leo could see Stark being pulled to the earth too. Both of them were helpless.

"No response from any controls, radio communications are down, what the heck is going on?!" Leo shrieked. Just moments before, Tony and Leo had been flying peacefully though the twilight sky, then a magnetic force latched onto both Festus and Tony's suit and now they were plummeting towards the earth. From what Leo had gathered between grasping onto Festus for his life and maintaining an eye on Stark, the force was magical. No magnet on earth was strong enough to bring down a metal dragon from several miles above land.

"Have...to...call..." Leo fought unconsciousness as the g-force grew rapidly. He struggled to connect his fingers to the dragon's controls. He managed to flip down a small lid which inside contained a simple device which Leo had installed as a last resource; something he hoped would be useful.

Winds tore against him as he corkscrewed towards the earth, a brief glance told Leo he had about fifteen seconds to impact. He tapped on the device three short times, three long times and again three short times. The international Morse code for S.O.S.

Leo slammed his eyes shut and the g-force took control him, rendering him unconscious as they crashed into the earth below.


	9. Imprisoned

Tony felt like a half ton truck which had just been in a fatal wreck. Upon regaining consciousness, he judged that he had fractured his ulna, as well as suffered severe bruising in multiple places. He gradually lifted his eyelids and took note of his surroundings. The air smelled of sulfur and oil, the metal walls of the dark room were cold and cruel, casting shadows on the contents of the room. His body was restrained by several layers of rope which gouged uncomfortably into his skin; to his left was a stack of scrap metal and numerous oil cans. In front of him he could make out the faint outline of Festus who grew dimly in the dark, the dragon appeared to be deactivated. The remains of his Iron Man suit were scattered and sloppily thrown onto Festus. On his right, a faded couch with a few emptied cereal boxes and energy drinks piled on top of it. The only thing that seemed to be missing was a certain sassy Latino boy.

"Mwhphmm," Tony tried to call, but the gag in his mouth caused his words to sound muffled and garbled.

A groan sounded from behind Tony, reassuring him that Leo was alive and hopefully in one piece. The following sounds of scuffling and thumping told Tony that Leo had just discovered his own environment in restraints.

Tony concentrated on his current state; his arms and legs were bound to what he guessed was a pole or some sort of column. He wriggled his hands the ropes, but each movement only seemed to tighten them. Tony's brow furrowed and he tried to pull against the bounds one more time; they visibly tightened themselves to Tony's wrists. His eyes sparked with realization; magic. If the ropes were magic, chances were that Leo would be unable to burn them off of himself; a frustrated sounding grunt confirmed Tony's hypothesis.

The jingling of keys and creaking of a heavy door clued Tony in that they were about to meet their demigodnapper. They moved remarkably quietly, as Tony strained to hear any footstep at all, in fact Tony couldn't hear footsteps. There was a consistent low squeak, the sort of noise you here if you are dragging something heavy across a floor on a hot day. A hiss came from Tony's left side and Tony's heartbeat increased. He really wanted a drink at this moment, although he doubted his host would offer any whisky.

"So," the mysterious figure spoke with a snakelike manner. "I went fishing for an aeroplane and caught a magical dragon, a flying robot man and two demigods. Oh, life does hand you a few surprises."

Tony cringed. A toxic smell filled the room; it smelled of decaying skin and week old garbage mixed with strong vanilla perfume. It took every muscle in Tony's stomach to prevent an wave of vomit from exiting his body.

"I suppose I should introduce myself;" the figure mused, slithering in the dark. "However I do prefer an element of secrecy, it adds a certain _je ne sais quoi_. Ah, would you listen to me? I sound like a fool, my children always did say I had a dramatic flair that needed to be tamed. I suppose I should remove your restrains so that I am not having a one way conversation in the dark."

Slimy fingers caressed Tony's left cheek, then gently undid the gag. Tony stretched his jaw and looked over at his captor whom was now _attending_ to Leo.

"Lady watch it, I like my face the way it is," Leo remarked.

"I wouldn't dream of hurting you dear," the woman soothed. "That is unless you try to run, in which case you will be eradicated."

"That would be a shame," Leo replied. Tony couldn't see him, but he could imagine Leo's stupid grin being flashed at their holder.

"Yeah, it would. Now can you please explain why we were dragged down to earth, practically killed, and now our dragon and my suit are in a scrap pile?"

"All in good time dear, all in good time," the woman assured, sliding over to the right wall. A click sounded and lights flickered on in the room. The lights themselves gave off a bluish light, like the kind used in hospitals. Now that she was in light, a new horror passed through Tony's mind, one he had forced himself to believe was buried deep in his family's past.

The woman was large, at least six feet tall and not the thinnest woman Tony had ever laid eyes on. Her hair was dark and cascaded down to her waist, her eyes were bright glowing green and her lips were thin. Her torso was of human resemblance, but her waist and downward transformed into a sickly green serpent's tail. Liquid seemed to steam from her tail, only to be absorbed by thick knife like scales which were reflecting light from the polished metal walls. When she smiled, her eyes crinkled and she revealed a pointed smile. She looked like an evil stepmother.

"My son would have loved to have seen this day, to have an _Avenger_ completely at his disposal. He always swore that he would seek the end of the Avengers Initiative, however his life was cut short." Her words were cut short with a melancholic sob. She then hissed and encircled Leo as if to weigh his worth.

"Who are you?" Leo's question snapped Tony's thought process back into reality.

The woman touched Tony's ropes, and he was instantly spun around the column to face Leo. Leo was in rough shape; his left eye was swollen shut, his arms were cut and blood mixed with dirt acted as the only bandages. His hair was massive knot blown to the right side of his head and his face was twisted in pain. Tony took note of how he was resting his body on the column; he leaned significantly to the right, alleviating force from his left leg. It was bent in an unnatural way that made Tony feel sick.

"Well, I'm afraid we haven't met yet," the woman cooed to Leo, patting his head gently. Leo made a gagging face at Tony who smirked in response. The woman circled round and grasped Tony's face with her fingers, turning his face side to side studying it. "This one, however, knows about me."

Tony didn't try to disclose his shock, his suspicions were being confirmed one after another. Dread began to pool in his stomach, working its way up to his conscience.

"I should be more specific," the woman's voice transformed from cool and calm to vengeful. The room seemed to darken around them, the lights convulsed rapidly as the woman seemed to grow another foot tall. She stooped down to Tony's level and starred at him in the eye.

"You knew my son."

Tony looked dead into her eyes, feeling frightened yet calm.

"You would have to remind me of whom he was," he confessed. "I've met a few monsters in my day, and frankly I didn't bother with names."

"Liar!" The woman screech, whipping her immense hand across Tony's face. The stinging sensation gave way to burning, leaving Tony in a state of immense pain.

"You killed my son," the woman hissed, lashing her forked tongue at Tony.

"Look lady, demigods kill monsters, monsters kill demigods, it's kind of how this system works. Plus he's a monster right, he'll come back from Tartarus eventually." Leo seemed to be thinking as words exited his mouth, Tony wished to strangle the kid right now before he said something that would reignite more wounds in this madwoman's heart.

Tony couldn't register her movements, she moved so swiftly. Leo made a gasping noise and Tony shouted in defiance.

"Let him go, he's not one of us. This is between you and the Avengers," he ordered.

The monster relinquished her grip on Leo's neck, leaving a steaming purple mark on his neck.

"You admit it then, you admit it was the Avengers goal to exterminate him," she accused. She slithered closer to him.

"He wanted to have dominion over the world," Tony begun. "The world, while we don't agree with it, mainly belongs to the mortals. We are peacekeepers, protectors of men. Your son wanted to see an age of tyranny, not of peace." Tony's wrath became more prominent as the conversation continued.

"Says the man who can't live without war, your entire company is built off war. What were you doing with that magic dragon? Going sightseeing? That is a weapon, enabled and capable of bringing down empires. The mortals were on my son's side, they turned against you."

Tony shut his mouth and looked at Leo who was obviously in agony. Leo looked at him with an expression that seemed to read "What the heck is the dragon lady talking about?"

The monster hissed and turned and headed towards the door. Tony's anger escalated, until he could no longer hold back his words.

"I'm not sorry about your son," Tony murmured.

Bad choice of words. The woman grabbed a long shafted piece of metal from the scrap piles and picked up Tony and shoved him against the pillar.

"Give it up Stark," she whispered, her tongue slipping in and out of her mouth as her pointed teeth elongated. "The Avengers are going to burn, are you willing to burn with them?"

Tony gasped for air and struggled as the grip around his neck tightened. The pounding of his own heartbeat filled his ears, drowning out Leo's protests.

"With...my...life," he managed, his breath slowing.

"Who are you?!" Leo's voice faintly registered in Tony's mind, as the woman lifted the metal.

"I am Echidna, mother of all monsters," she declared. She then took the metal and shoved it into Tony's right shoulder, gouging it through his skin. A scarlet stream erupted from Tony's side as she released him. He crumpled to the floor, strength eluding him. The room grew darker and darker, Leo screamed Tony's name.

Echidna bent down to Tony's level and whispered in his ear as he gave way to blackness.

"Hail Hydra."


	10. Moving Out

"Just come back alive okay Seaweed Brain?" Annabeth's face shimmered as the Iris message began to fade away. Percy smiled warmly as he looked at her for one more moment before the mist evaporated. He had called her to let her know that he, Steve and Bucky were about to leave on a rescue mission to get Tony and Leo. He had inquired about the potential of a giant magnet in the state of Maine, unfortunately Annabeth hadn't heard of anything. She had offered some wisdom of course, but nothing that revealed what the three guys were up against. Percy personally hoped it wasn't anything mythological, but with his luck, it would probably be some old foe on a mission to vanquish demigods. Half-bloods had that affect on monsters.

Percy stood up and walked toward the door of his cabin, heaving his backpack over his shoulder. He stepped out into the clearing, seeing the sun rise over the hill behind the Big House. It was just after 7:00 A.M. so only a few campers who were on patrol or doing early chores were out of the cabins. Percy looked over at the Zeus cabin and saw Steve adorn his shield and began to make his way towards him.

"Annabeth have anything that would help us?" Steve asked, zipping up his black hoodie.

Percy shook his head. "Nothing, she seemed stumped on this, which she _hates._ Any luck from Vision or Wanda?"

"They haven't heard anything either, no news broadcasts or anything. I think the mist is working against us on this one."

"Not the only thing it would seem," a new voice chimed in. Bucky appeared by Steve's side, his hair was tucked messily into a ponytail and his clothes were rumpled. According to Sam, Bucky had been awake most of the night going through information he had when he was the Winter Soldier to find any correlation. "Whatever made them disappear, it's nothing new. Perhaps it's old, ancient even."

"What are you suggesting?" Percy urged.

Bucky furrowed his brow. "It's hard to explain, but I feel very unnerved when I think about this event. It seems familiar, I just can't put my finger on it."

"Alright, so we have close to no leads, limited supplies and we are already losing daylight. Gentlemen, let's move." Steve closed the conversation and began towards the edge of camp.

They arrived at the edge of camp where they were met by Chiron, Bruce and Sam.

"This is the general area of where they could have landed," Bruce handed them a small map of Maine, an area of a ten mile radius was marked out, most of which the landscape seemed to be fields and small towns. "It's not much to go on, but those are the approximate readings we got from what we could recover from Festus's broadcasting."

"Thanks Bruce," Steve neatly folded the map and tucked it into his pocket. He turned to Sam who was currently studying the three of them. "You could come with us you know, you'd be a huge help."

Sam shrugged his shoulders and smiled. "This could be a trap, in which case the action will be brought to me, and then who is the real winner?"

"Probably the monsters with your fighting skills," Bucky said coolly.

"I'd kick your butt in a fight man," Sam retorted.

"If I recall, the last time we were in a fight, I beat you."

"You ripped my wings off."

"You didn't move your seat."

"Guys, seriously, Tony and Leo could be dead," Percy snapped. All eyes turned to Percy, as it was quite unusual that someone like Percy would turn serious. "We need to get moving now."

"Percy's right," Chiron stepped forward, assessing the three. "You can take a cab to the city, from there it is about a seven hour drive to the locations we located. You need to move swiftly with discretion. Good luck, and may the gods go with you."

Steve nodded at Chiron as a sign of respect.

"We'll get Tony and Leo back," he assured the centaur. "Sam, Bruce, if you pick up anything send us an Iris message immediately, no matter how small the detail."

"Will do," Bruce smiled softly, unease twinkled in his eyes.

"Let's go," Percy motioned his arm and began to jog over the crest of the hill, Bucky and Steve following closely behind. The three got into a cab and began their quest to the Big Apple.

—

Hours past, the morning sun rose high in the sky and began to set on the horizon. Steve starred out the passenger window of a rusted pick up as Percy managed to hit every pothole on the beat up back road. Bucky was fast asleep in the cluttered backseat of the vehicle, the cut on his brow was decorated with speckles of blood.

"Are all of your missions like this?" Steve questioned, starring at the passing fields.

Percy cracked his neck and rubbed some dried blood away from his nose.

"Escaping death from populated mortal areas, yes, stealing a truck from a monster disguised as an old farmer, that's a first."

"I guess moral codes can't be part of being a demigod," Steve concluded.

"From what I have learned, the Avengers don't sit on a higher throne," Percy muttered.

"True, I don't have an excuse for the amount of motorcycles I have scratched up," Steve chuckled.

"You are America's Golden Boy," Percy teased. "It's amazing that the national anthem doesn't sound every time you walk into a room."

"Gods that would get annoying," Steve shook his head. The two laughed as they zipped along the road.

Percy checked the review mirror, no one followed from what he could see.

"How much longer?" Percy asked, turning onto another mile road. The truck clanged, resembling a clunky steam engine on the verge of a breakdown.

"Assuming this rust-bucket holds up, about a half hour until we are in the radius," Steve gauged, observing the map.

"Should we wake up Bucky?" Percy asked.

Steve shook his head. "That thing hit him pretty hard in the head — whatever it was. What was it?"

"Well it looked like a horse and a rooster had a mutant child; not one of your kind huh?" Percy asked.

"In terms of heroes, I've heard of radioactive green beasts, women able to control objects with their mind and let's not forget those who rely on suits for powers. No, this wasn't one of ours."

"Bummer, I would love to have a cock-horse on our team. Imagine the fear it would inflict on our enemies," Percy mused sarcastically.

The two laughed as they continued down the winding dirt road. The sun's last light disappeared behind the horizon, casting a orange haze through the trees. Deer poked their heads out of tall reeds in the ditches beside the road, the shadows grew casting looming darkness in twisted patterns on the ground. Stars emerged from behind the clouds, night enveloped the earth and Percy struggled to keep his eyes awake. The muggy night air seemed to be singing a lullaby, wishing him to shut his weary eyes and relax for a few minutes. A glance at Steve, and Percy could tell the air was having the same affect on him.

"Steve," Percy moaned, shaking his head furiously. The sweetness of the scent cloaked Percy's mind, moving him to a state of relaxation. The swaying and swerving of the truck steadied as it seemed to be pulled along the road. While his eyes fought to remain clear, Percy came to the startling realization that he was no longer in control of the truck, rather the truck was rocketing towards the edge of the road at a accelerated pace.

"Steve," Percy whispered once more before the sickly perfume overtook his mind. Darkness swirled in his mind as the force pulled the truck into the field with a ground shaking crash. The truck didn't stop, it continued to speed into the field.

A firm grasp on Percy's shoulders resurrected his senses. Percy cracked his eyelids open to see a dazed looking Steve haphazardly kicking at the truck door. Percy saw it fly open and off its hinges and Steve's grip tightened on Percy.

"We need to jump, now!" Steve ordered, although his urgency was mixed with a sleepy drawl. Steve climbed into the back half of the truck and slapped Bucky across the face. A very confused Bucky started cursing in Russian as Steve shoved him into the front seat.

"Out, now!" Steve stammered, pushing Bucky towards the door. Bucky's confusion didn't let up, but he seemed to sense the importance of the words. He steadied himself in the doorway and leapt out into the field, disappearing amongst the wheat.

The truck shook violently, bolts coming loose, tires flat and scrapping on the dirt. The vehicle must have been moving at least at 80km (about 50 mph) and continued to speed up. Steve turned and grab a half-conscious Percy and held him tightly against his chest.

"Sorry buddy," Steve mumbled. The truck swerved and the two demigods flew out of the truck and into the grass, rolling and thumping across the cold earth. Once the spinning stopped, Steve gently pushed off Percy's limp body and took a breath. The air was slightly clearer, but the sweetness continue to ease Steve into a light minded state.

"Maybe just a light rest," Steve mumbled to himself. He began to shut his eyes when an explosion lit up the dark sky just a mile to the east. The ringing faded as Steve fought to remain conscious.

"Steve," a muffled voice buzzed in over the handheld radio. "It's Bruce, we have precise co-ordinates, you are about one mile from the exact crash site. Steve? Steve come in?"

The pleading voice of Bruce gave way to darkness as Steve's eyes won the battle and he slipped into sweet sleep.


	11. Disturbing Discovery

"Tony," a garbled voice registered as Tony's body regained consciousness. His side felt ablaze, raw flesh was exposed, his heartrate was rapid. Immediately he moved his hand to his side and pressed firmly against the pulsing wound. His muscles stiffened in protest against any attempt at movement, however if he didn't stop the bleeding quickly, the next time he passed out may be the last time he ever saw light.

His blurred vision began to clear, a dazed and concerned looking Leo leaned over him, holding a ripped piece of blood coated fabric. Leo's neck was swollen and purple, oozing with a mysterious liquid that seemed to bubble when contacting air. His leg wasn't any better, it was bent in an excruciating position but that didn't seem to be the boy's main concern.

"Don't move man," Leo scolded. "You're bleeding a lot; I don't know how long you will stay if you attempt to get up at this moment." The cloth was once again forced against Tony's side, absorbing as much blood as possible.

"Where did the crazy snake lady go?" Tony murmured, cupping his hand against his side. His breath was shaky and his voice was hoarse.

"A red light began blinking and she slithered out of here as fast as her little tail could move, I guess something else was more important than torturing two geniuses in an old junkyard basement," Leo said coldly. Leo broke off a piece of ambrosia and urged Tony to open his mouth to eat some. Tony sighed happily as the taste of shawarma filled his mouth as the food of the gods entered his mouth.

Tony understood Leo's tone of voice. The only thing that would have caused any distress to the monster would have been more demigods; most likely there was a group sent to recover Leo and Tony and now they had walked into a trap because the two of them had wandered a little too far away from camp. Tony cursed himself for letting his curiosity preoccupy his limited sense of caution. Even for someone as spontaneous as Tony, he had tried to be more alert of his surroundings after the Ultron incidents. Once again he had fallen short of not only his own expectations, but those of others. Now he had gone and put his own half brother at risk, as well as the lives of those trying to rescue two fools in the middle of Maine.

"As soon as the bleeding stops, we got to move. If she's gone, we may have a chance of getting out of here," Leo attempted to sound upbeat, but his thoughts were obviously on the same track as Tony's.

"Right. How did you get out of these bonds?" Tony glanced down at his hand which were still tight and chaffing. Leo's wrists were red with rope burn, but they were free.

"Echidna may be clever, but she's not super graceful. She accidently dripped some of her nasty tail acid on my rope when she was, er, admiring my face. It started eating away at the fibers immediately, I just waited until she left and then I pulled the final few chords apart."

"Yeah, that's great, but how are we going to get _me_ out of here?" Tony flatly stated. The throbbing in his side began to lessen as the ambrosia began to work. Blood clotted on his side and Leo secured a new piece of scrap fabric to his side with the acid burnt rope.

Leo's normally playful eyes were dull and void. "I don't know," he said plainly. "But that is no excuse, Leo Valdez is up for the job," he forced humour into his words.

"Yes you are, I have faith in you," Tony said, his words vacant of any sarcasm.

"I could use some assistance from that genius mind of yours," Leo joked, dragging himself towards the side of the basement.

"Well my view is limited, but what do we have for assets of escaping?" Tony asked, leaning over to see Leo who was attaching a piece of metal to the side of his twisted leg and binding it with some rope from his tool belt which had been partially buried beneath Festus's wing.

"Festus is out for the count, unfortunately," Leo's words were heavy with sorrow. "On the bright side, we have my tool belt, some pieces of your suit, some magic rope once we get it off of you, and our incredibly astute minds."

"You forgot that our minds are trapped in injured bodies," Tony reminded him sarcastically, straightening himself.

"Minor detail, plus that ambrosia works swiftly. I'm guessing we will be gods by the time we get out of this room!" Leo threw his hands in the air, as if waiving over a nymph to take serve him. "Yes, fit my meeting with Zeus in for 2:00, but remember that I need to pick up my Mustang from Apollo at 2:15!"

Tony couldn't help but laugh a little.

"With optimism like that, I'm sure not even Olympus could stand at our feet," he smirked playfully,

Leo beamed genuinely. "You bet! They shall tremble before Valdez and Stark!"

"Stark and Valdez," Tony corrected. He looked at his wrists which were still bound. "All fantasizing aside, let's address the real situation in the room."

"Right!" Leo said standing up, wincing as his leg adjusted to his makeshift splint. He wobbled over to Tony and studied the rope. After a few seconds, he withdrew from his belt a pair of celestial bronze scissors and snipped at the rope. The first few penetrations were sloppy, but eventually the rope submitted to the magical tool and Tony's bounds fell away.

Tony rubbed his wrists and flashed an appreciating glance at Leo who was fastening his belt to him. Leo put an arm around Tony's shoulder and heaved him to his feet. Tony grit his teeth as pain surged throughout his side. The two of them began to move rhythmically towards the door. The dimly lit basement lighting grew even darker as they approached the metal exit which was cracked open slightly.

Tony leaned against the door, forcing it aside as Leo limped into the bleak corridor. The length of the hall was hard to determine in such miniscule lighting, but Tony could make out a few doors scattered along the sides of the walls. After his eyes had adjusted to the lightening, the first impressions of the hall grew bleaker. Not only did old stains decorate the walls, but there was no clear exit anywhere in sight.

"Let's see what's behind door number one!" Leo chippered as he wobbled to the first door on the left. He grasped the metal knob and placed all his bodyweight on the door as he forced open the door. A faint greenish yellow light leaked into the main hallway, allowing Tony to read Leo's expression. He had frozen in the door way, whether in fear or amazement, Tony couldn't discern.

"Leo?" Tony croaked, approaching his friend slowly.

Leo didn't respond. He remained vigil, starring into the room, his face become distinguishably alarmed. Tony stood next to Leo and his face morphed into the same reaction as Leo's. There in the room out of the earth was a massive half surfaced bubble. Inside it, steaming colours of green and yellow misted about a churning object. The thing seemed to be growing, pressing against the sides of the thin membrane. It appeared to have lengthy appendages, with large heads attached to them. It appeared as though it was about to pierce the only barrier between it and the demigods at any second.

"Is that a," Leo breathed, his body shaking.

Tony swallowed and nodded slowly.

"We need to get out of here, now," Tony grabbed Leo's arm and lead him away from the slowly birthing Hydra.


	12. Rebirth

"Steve, wake up!" An iron hand slapped Steve repeatedly across the face. Confused and slightly annoyed, Steve grabbed his awakener by the arm and shoved him aside. Bucky knelt next to him, his eyes were slightly pink and the rest of him looked like he had been through a combine. On his right, Steve noted a very lost looking Percy Jackson, who was stumbling around the field. He looked as disheveled as Bucky, only he had accumulated about twice the straw in his hair compared to Bucky. The wheat stalks had left a thin scratch across the top of his forehead. Other than those immediate observances, the three of them were in pretty decent shape, considering their circumstances.

"What happened?" Steve asked, his head pounding as he positioned himself upright. The field itself was rather itchy, which surprised Steve. He had always imagined fields of wheat to be softy, wispy, almost like nature's bed; on the contrary, it poked into whatever part of your body dare rest upon it.

"Well, from what I remember, you made me jump out of a truck." Bucky shot him a condescending glare. His face then lit up and he jovially continued, "that and some sort of sleep gas bomb went off, putting us all to sleep. Although next time, give me a chance to fully wake up before I am forced out of a moving vehicle."

"Hey, you're alive," Steve pointed out. "You may have died if not for my act of kindness."

Bucky shrugged and offered an arm to Steve, Steve accepted and grunted as he was hoisted to his feet. He flashed a gratuitous look at Bucky, whom in return nudged him playfully.

"Percy?" Steve called out to the Son of Poseidon, whom was currently fixated on a smoke column rising from a mile away.

"There. Banner said the location was a mile away," Percy cleared his throat, his voice was serious. "We have to move now, if Leo and Tony were in there,"

"Don't allow yourself to think like that," Steve ordered. He picked up his shield which lay a few metres away and strapped it to his back. "Whatever is holding them hostage, it won't have them for long."

"Peerrrcccyyyyyy!" A loudening wail rose from across the field. Steve locked his eyes on two targets, making rapid pace through the swirling wheat. A smile cracked on his face. They were alive! However, before he could begin to concoct ideas on to how their survivable was feasible, Steve realized the reason why the cry had been less of a joyous yelp and more of an ear curdling shriek. Right on their tails was a hideous monster, something only fates could describe.

"Oh gods," Percy's voice lacked its usual confident tone. He uncapped Riptide and rushed towards Leo and Tony.

"Wait, Percy!" Steve cried in defiance. "It could be a trap!"

"Yeah, I know!" Percy returned the call. Steve motioned to Bucky to follow him, and they followed after the headstrong demigod.

Percy had been in a lot of battles before. He had faced empousi, Titans, amazons, even a god and won. He had the pleasure of sending them all to Tartarus, and then dueling some of them again when he himself had been dragged into Tartarus by Arachne with Annabeth. Out of all the monsters he had faced, there was one he had yet to defeat; the mother of all monsters. Echidna. He had met her once before on his first quest in St. Louis on the Arch, however he had been so badly injured he jumped off the arch into the river below. Now, years later, he had the chance to take her on.

The rustling in the field behind him told him that Steve and Bucky had chosen to follow his lead, a decision which may or may not prove to be unwise on their behalf; after all, he hadn't invited them to rush into bloody combat. Ideally, this would be over in a few moments, but you never knew with monsters. Most of them were stupid, a few slashes to the neck and Riptide would turn them to sparkly monster dust, but some were clever; Echidna, Percy gathered, wasn't a stupid snake-mutant.

"Percy! Turn around man!" Leo screamed at him, the snake woman about fifty feet behind him and closing. Leo's leg was mangled, making it hard for him to move swiftly through the thick wheat. Tony stayed slightly ahead of Leo, checking over his shoulder frequently to make sure his brother was okay. The normally composed Avenger looked distraught. It made Percy wonder what had shaken both of them up so incredibly much? Was there more than just Echidna on their tail?

"Keep running, I'll keep her distracted!" Percy argued, forging past Leo and pointing Riptide challengingly at Echidna. Steve and Bucky caught up with Percy and formed a position. Steve raised his shield, ready to block any attack that the mother of monsters would cast; Bucky withdrew a knife and tucked it neatly between his thumb and forefingers. They looked pretty impressive.

"Hold together!" Steve commanded.

"Dude, do you ever take a break from being a soldier?" Percy groaned.

Steve blinked as if he didn't understand the question. Bucky rolled his eyes and responded for him. "In short, no."

"Time to relax a little," Percy commented, tensing his legs for a sprint.

"Percy," Bucky asked, caution ebbing his words. "What the heck are you doing?"

"No idea!" Percy beamed confidently, jumping out of formation and slashing his sword at Echidna who loomed over him. Echidna weaved around his attack and continued past the small blockade, in a slightly different direction than the others.

Percy's gaze transformed from aggressive to bewildered. He looked at the others in disbelief. Bucky shrugged his shoulders, and Steve, while obviously upset by the fighting tactics Percy had decided upon, silently agreed something wasn't right.

They turned and saw Leo and Tony heading towards the very edge of the field, into a shallow culvert. Echidna moved in the opposite direction, but keeping within a few feet of the boys.

"What is she doing?" Bucky covered his eyes to block out the sunlight streaming in from the east. The snake-woman stopped when she was about equal distance between Percy's group and Leo and Tony. She then let lose a shrill noise that seemingly shook the tips of the wheat.

All eyes on her. The woman grew larger and larger until she stood about twenty feet in the air. Her black tongue whipped in and out of her mouth, the noise it made sounded like paper being ripped which was amplified by a microphone.

"Gentlemen," she hissed, her tail whipping through the wheat. The smell which penetrated Percy's senses smelled horrendous, like rotting eggs and paint mixed together and then left in the sun only to be forgotten. In other words, she reeked. "You may be wondering why I have assembled you here."

"Can we cut the sob story monologue that leads into you attacking us? I've had a rough day and frankly, I just want a drink," Tony whined.

Echidna seemed to consider this for a second, but then continued. "I can comply with some, as you don't need to know me; all you need to know is my son. Percy Jackson, I believe you were the one to last send him to Tartarus," the final words out of her sentence came out with vengeance and pure malice.

Percy's face remained calm, disturbingly calm. He stepped forth and mockingly bowed at the gigantic monstrosity.

"I will take credit for that."

"You play a dangerous game Jackson," she chided. "He was not only a villain of gargantuan glory, but also the head of a monstrous cause. You would know it better as H.Y.D.R.A."

Bucky stiffened and locked his sight to his shoes. Echidna looked over at him and smiled sweetly.

"Why, what have we here? James Buchanan Barnes, the elite assassin. Had you forgotten of the great part you had to play in shaping the earth as it is? We are so grateful for your work."

Bucky glared at her, his jaw was stern, shoulders square as if he wanted to punch this oversized earthworm right in the gut.

"Hydra killed James Buchanan Barnes," he shouted. "All that was left was an empty fool, influenced by a toxic institution." His breathing steadied as he stared down the beast.

"My dear, you forget that you too are of legend. The Winter Soldier, my son spoke frequently of you and your…accomplishments. I'm afraid you are mistaken as to where the toxin in your life flows from. The only thing poisonous in your life is these pathetic beings you call friends. I would have you dead before you would ever join ranks with any of them again. However, you are not what I am after today."

Steve raised his arm to throw his shield, but Percy forced him to put it down.

"What do you want Echidna?" Percy demanded, keeping his arm across Steve to prevent the Avenger from eliminating whatever leads the beast could give them.

Slime oozing from her tail began to take effect on the grass, steam rose from the grains and they fell limp in a sickly green sludge. She leaned over Percy, extending her arm as a power symbol.

"The Avengers were annoying enough when they were in New York, then they went to Sokovia, then Washington. I think it's time I uproot the true birthplace of the Avengers; past, present and future. However, I can't do it alone." Her sinister gaze passed over each demigod in the field. If Percy had ever wished for a rematch against a monster in the past, it would be her.

Echidna lifted her chubby arms and pointed at the burning silo which glowed in the light of dawn. The earth around it began to fall in, almost bubbling around something that was rising. A large sphere rose out of the ground to reveal something swimming in a murky liquid. The object pressed against the film, stretching itself out, as if discovering it was trapped inside something that needed to be destroyed in order to be free.

Percy caught his breath, he had only seen something like this in one other place; Tartarus. Monsters were born again in a sense after they were killed, not a pleasant experience. If whatever was in that bubble managed to escape before the bubble was destroyed, it would be angry, and because it would be angry, they were as good as dead.

Percy watched, feeling defeated as Echidna slithered back to the bubble and encircled it in a protective stance. Any dream of destroying the bubble had successfully been foiled by the snake. The monster kicked furiously at the membrane, earth continued to fall into the growing pit. Teeth were now visibly grasping at the walls, tearing into the sides with vigor. To Percy's horror, it broke through. Liquid splashed out, covering Echidna in disgusting fluids, but she seemed to joyful to realize how repulsive that truly was. The monster unraveled itself to reveal its true size. It stood up, standing upright the body itself was a bit shorter than Percy, but the four heads which extended at least six feet from the body made up for it's short torso. It let out a fearsome roar and snapped its jaws angrily at the demigods, fire emitting from it's snake-like mouth.

"Camp Half-Blood will burn," she screamed giddily, clapping her hands together, tossing her stringy hair back and for like a small child. "And you won't have the chance to defend it, ah, such a beautiful day it is." She shrunk herself to the size she was prior to her son's rebirthing and mounted his back. She whispered into his ears in some foreign tongue, unknown to Percy. The Hydra hissed menacingly in reply and moved swiftly through the wheat as dawn melted into early morning.

The five men stood in the field, shaking and stunned. After a few moments of silence, it was Leo who finally whipped out a communicator.

"Where did you get that?" Percy asked, stepping over to his injured friend's side.

"Found it on our way out of the silos basement."

"I didn't know silos had basements."

"They don't, it was her lair."

"Was it cool?"

"Not really. Just a lot of scrap metal and gross monster stuff that I had no desire to find out what it was."

"Camp in danger, everyone going to die! Ring any bells?" Tony urged, moving over to them.

"Right!" Leo pulled a screwdriver out of his tool belt and adjusted a screw so the frequency adjuster would move. He then wiggled the knob until the static cleared and the channel was open.

"Bruce?" Leo asked.

"Oh, hey, you're alive!" Bruce's voice sounded relieved.

"Yeah, but you might not be for much longer, Echidna and the Hydra are on their way till camp." Leo reported.

Silence for a moment, then a stuttering Bruce responded. "How-how long have we got?"

"Judging by the speed of that thing, despite it's stubby legs, maximum of eight hours before monster momma begins to break down the borders of the camp," Tony thought aloud.

"Five hours," Bucky mumbled. The others turned to the ex-assassin whom was staring at the wheat.

"I'm sorry, but there is no way my calculations are incorrect," Tony defended himself proudly.

"The Hydra is an aquatic monster. Echidna was leading him south but I would guarantee that she will redirect him to the sea. Once he is on his home turf, the guy will move. Five hours, or less."

No one bothered to argue with him, if anyone knew Hydra's, well Bucky would defiantly have the vast knowledge the others lacked from personal experience.

"Did you ever meet any legitimate Hydra's when you were, you know," Leo asked curiously.

"No, but the Winter Soldiers were trained as individual heads of the Hydra. Some specialized as aquatic, marine soldiers; others were unparalleled in flight. I was apart of the ground and stealth unit," he explained grimly.

Steve put an encouraging arm around his friend and mumbled something which Bucky nodded in response to.

"Thanks Buck, at least we know what we're up against. Bruce, you still there?" Steve called.

"Yeah, Sam just arrived too."

"Percy, you know the camp the best, you give the orders," Steve decided. No one objected to the position which was offered to experienced camper.

Percy nodded in agreement and took the radio from Leo. A slightly mischievous smile crept across his lips as Percy raised the radio to his lips.

"Bruce, are you feeling angry?"


	13. Frantic Return

Bruce lowered the radio from his mouth and turned around to face Chiron. He and the centaur exchanged a mournful expression.

"Do you think Percy's idea will work?" Bruce inquired.

Chiron paced across the Big House, rubbing his arms methodically.

"I've seen the boy in many battles, and while he is impulsive, reckless and incredibly unpredictable, I see no major tactical flaws in his plan."

Bruce nodded in agreement. He turned towards Sam whom was standing to his left, observing the two leaders as they decided the fate of the camp.

"Gather the Apollo and Demeter camps, organize them on the front lines. I want the archers in the trees and the Demeter campers on the ground, fortifying the bases and growing bushes to disguise the ambush. Then organizing the Ares, Hermes and other cabins into different sections; I want one specialized for attack and one specifically for defense, the other groups feel free to organize as you see fit. Make sure the Hephaestus campers are setting up traps in a place that other campers know about, and remember to check that the Hermes campers aren't up to any funny business," Bruce rattled off the commands to Sam whom attempted to absorb all the orders which were being issued to him.

"As you wish sir," Sam mockingly bowed and walked outside.

Chiron smiled after Sam left the door and addressed Sam.

"You keep this up, perhaps you will take my place as camp director."

Bruce shook his head in protest.

"No, I couldn't. You are irreplaceable Chiron; the camp couldn't survive without your guidance."

"On the contrary," Chiron argued. "The camp _must_ be able to sustain itself without me. I am not immortal."

"But you are centuries old!" Bruce protested, walking towards the door.

"Indeed I am," the centaur agreed, picking up his sword and trotting through the front door. The early morning dew coated the grass, a gently breeze carried the scent of strawberries across the camp. Hardly the morning you would expect to have a gruesome battle on. Chiron breathed in heavily and sighed in contentment. "However, do not confused prolonged life with immortality. I am alive because the gods deemed I have work left here; once they see my work as complete, they will allow me to rest at last."

"Couldn't you just take a vacation?" Bruce chuckled softly, following Chiron down the steps in direction of the centre of camp.

"I'm afraid I don't know the meaning of the word," Chiron teased lightly.

The camp was fully awake and moving now. The sound of metal being sharpened and campers ordering one another around, disturbing the morning peace. Nymphs drifted around, serving breakfast to the campers, as it was always a bad idea to go to war on an empty stomach. Bruce nodded to Sam whom was currently tightening the leather straps of one of the Apollo campers. Sam flashed him a slightly worried expression, but quickly masked it so the others couldn't see.

"They're nervous," Bruce observed, shoving his hands into his pockets.

"As they should be," Chiron responded glumly. "Many whom first arrive at camp eagerly await their first battle. They naively believe it will be glorious and will put their names in a special place in time; what they fail to see it the only thing left behind is the stains of their own bloodlust. The wise look at battle not as a pedestal, but as a graveyard. I need not lecture you on this, I see it in your eyes," Chiron looked at Bruce warmly. "You see war for what is, and so I have observed, you approach it with extreme caution."

Bruce shrugged his shoulders and starred at his shoes which scrapped along the ground. "It's not an honourable reason that keeps me from fighting," he confessed. "When the other guy comes out, I can't necessarily control whom he attacks or whom gets in the way. He endangers me as much as anyone else."

"Bruce," Chiron cut him short. "I don't think you realize who you are, and who the Hulk is."

Bruce shot him a baffled look. "I know _exactly_ who he is—he is everything I suppress, released when I lose control. How can Percy expect me to fight, how can anyone expect me to fight on a team where I can't choose who I fight? Natasha was the only one who could control the Hulk, and I have no way of telling where she is. Chiron, the campers will be terrified of me! I can't fight."

"You will fight." Chiron stepped in front of him, putting his hooves down, obstructing Banner's path. Banner shot him an angered glare, but the centaur refused to budge.

"Oh really? You rattle off a monologue on why war is a murderous affair and then change your mind and order me to fight when you know the consequences of both myself and war? You contradict yourself," Bruce retorted.

"The Hulk is not a curse, Banner," Chiron boomed. His stern expression evolved into something kinder as more words followed. "Have you ever considered he is protecting you? And as for contradictory, if you listened to my words, you would have realized what I was saying. I say was is a graveyard, which is true," he paused for a second and placed a hand on Bruce's shoulder. "But, there are wars that are worth fighting. Is protecting the camp not a worthy fight to partake in?"

Bruce furrowed his brow and weighed the conversation in his mind. After a moment, he regarded the centaur and nodded. The centaur smiled and guided Bruce towards the armory.

"Just one thing remains," Bruce said. "I need to get angry."

"That I will be happy to oblige!" A cheeky voice sounded behind him, Travis Stoll appeared, holding a can of silly string.

The sun rose high into the sky, around ten o'clock the campers began to take their positions in the woods. Sam had leaders assigned from each cabin put in an earpiece to keep in communication on the battlefront. Bruce had been placed near the front with the Stoll brothers, whom had displayed a natural talent for ticking Bruce off in the past.

Sam slipped into his suit, extending the wings and oiling the joints, doing a brief inspection before he joined the rest of his cabin in the trees near the edge of the woods. Will held a pair of binoculars against his eyes, scanning the distant hills and shoreline for any signs of a snake lady riding on a multiheaded beast from Hades. Below, Nico had joined ranks with the Demeter children whom were in charge of defense.

"What are our chances, really?" Will asked Sam.

Sam looked at Will, who sat a few branches beneath him.

"I have no idea," he chuckled. "But we have the Hulk, Captain America and a few kick butt army members, plus an arsenal of demigods with trippy powers. I'd say we will kick this thing right to Tartarus."

"You seem confident," Will mused, resuming his watch of the horizon, his golden curls reflected light that seeped through the leaves.

"And you don't," Sam considered. "Isn't this the same camp that stopped Kronos and Gaea?"

"Yes," Will agreed, lowering his binoculars to look at Sam. His expression was steady and concerned. "But with monsters, sometimes the smaller groups can make a deeper wound. One time a rogue chimera attacked a morning watch, two came back missing limbs, another three were in agony for weeks because other acid."

"We have advanced warning," Sam reminded. "That's something in our favour."

"I would hope so," Will replied.

"Will! Movement in the east!" Another camper cried from a tree about ten yards away.

Sam climbed up a few more branches and zoomed his focus to where the camper had specified. Sure enough, a slithering streak was zipping towards camp at an amplified rate.

"Bruce!" Sam called down to his friend, who was hidden in the thickets below.

"Demeter, Aphrodite and Athena campers, raise defenses!" Bruce ordered, his normally soft voice vanished, instead a commanding tone took over. For a moment, Sam could truly see that the genius as more than just an awkward science geek; he was a child of Athena.

Bushes appeared out of thin air as the campers strategically grew them in a pattern which they had arranged with the Athena campers. The Aphrodite campers, lead by Piper McClean, positioned themselves at the edges of the bushes, ready to use their strength of distraction and confusion of the enemy that was approaching.

"Banner!" Will called up. "You should see this!"

Bruce scurried down the branches and took the binoculars from Will who had a flabbergasted expression on his face. He placed the rubber rings to his cheekbones and searched the horizon. Peaking over the hills, a dangerously fragile looking car puttered through the country with a few rockets attached to either side. Bruce could see Tony maneuvering the very crowded vehicle, with Leo practically sprawled across his lap. To Tony's right, Percy sat in the front, holding one of the rockets in place whilst moving his mouth to form, what Bruce assumed to be, words that weren't so encouraging to Tony about his reckless driving. In the back of the car, Steve, Bucky and a bunch of pieces of the Iron Man suit and Festus squished them into an inhumane positioning. It was hard to tell with all the pieces of scrap metal, but it appeared that Bucky's arm was missing.

"False alarm," Bruce said reassuringly. "Friendly targets, nothing to be worried about."

The campers relaxed their weapons and peaked over the barriers at the rapidly incoming car. The clunking of the metal parts echoed across the woods as the car pulled to a stop and the five fell out of the vehicle.

"Oh gods, I'm going to be sick," Percy moaned as he retched behind the car.

"If you are like this on land, how are you the son of the sea god?" Tony asked.

"Simple, the sea isn't as violent as your driving." Steve commented, pushing a metal chunk off of himself."

"The sea isn't as violent as your driving," Tony mimicked Steve's words in a sing-song voice. "At least I was able to get this vehicle so we could make it back before the camp goes in to a battle, seriously none of you have any sense of gratitude."

"Maybe there is a reason for that," Bucky glared at him, sure enough, his metal arm was missing.

Bruce dismounted from the tree and ran over to them.

"If you all keep yelling like that, our position will be completely compromised," he scolded. He then stopped and looked at them all more carefully. "You look like you've been to Tartarus, what happened to you all?"

"Ask Tony," Bucky grumped, walking into the bush.

Steve gave Bruce a "sorry about him," look and followed his friend.

"I'm with them, I need to grab some armor. Tony will move the car." He pushed his way into the forest. Bruce turned to Tony and Leo who were standing by the car. Leo shifted his weight from one leg to another.

"Would now be a bad time to bring the car to the bunker?" Leo asked Tony who was keeping his eyes fixed on Bruce.

"Go, now," Tony said surprisingly tenderly to Leo. Leo hopped in the front seat and ignited the car. The vehicle shuddered and it clinkered its way into the thick of the woods, moving at about the same rate as a snail. After the puttering faded, Bruce addressed Tony.

"What happened?" Bruce asked. "It's not unusual to see them ticked at you, but this seemed pretty serious."

"I swear it wasn't my fault this time. We ran into a bit of trouble with Echidna when Leo and I were escaping, we didn't have a ride back so I called in the help of a friend. He's a bit of a con and insisted in taking Bucky's arm for payment."

"What kind of guy asks for an arm for payment?" Bruce pondered aloud.

"Sorry, should have clarified, he's a raccoon," Tony said matter-o-factly, as if that cleared everything up.

"Huh," Bruce mused. "What about Percy, what had him all worked up?"

Tony blinked and shoved his hands in his pockets. "That may have had something to do with the army we discovered on our way over here. Percy was pretty shaken by it all."

"An army? Why in Zeus's name did no one mention that earlier?" Bruce exclaimed, spit exited his mouth and his eyes burned. A slight green tinge began to creep in on the edge of his vision.

"Easy big guy, don't go green yet. Bucky was distracted, obviously Steve was preoccupied because ultimately his friendships trump all things important in life, and Percy was…I'll say somewhat allowed to be ticked at my driving. Admittedly it wasn't the smoothest ride I have ever given, but we were on a time crunch so I figured it was okay."

"Stark, army, focus!" Bruce yelled, stepping in close to him. "I need to know what we are up against."

"Well, it's not an army, per say," Tony raised an eyebrow, looking off.

"Words, Stark, I need words," Bruce forcibly placed his hands around Tony's face, forcing him to keep eye contact.

"Okay, try a bunch of slithering snakes and a few dozen bees, how does that sound to you?" Tony pushed Bruce's hand away from his face and leaned in to whisper into Bruce's ear. "I don't think a few bushes is going to stop her."

Bruce stepped a few feet away from Stark and paced in the edge of the woods. "Okay, how long until they are here?"

"An hour, tops,"

A low hum sounded on the horizon, both men turned to the east. A smoky cloud appeared on the edge of the hill, along with a four headed beast. On top of the beast sat the demon herself, a creature with the torso of a woman and the lower half of a serpent. The grass seemed to swim, but as they drew closer, Bruce discerned it was not the wind that was moving the plants around, but elongated miniature versions of pythons that slithered towards them.

"Form ranks!" Bruce yelled, grabbing Tony's arm and sprinting into the woods. As they ran, tangles of bramble and thickets grew around them, guiding their way back to the base where the campers waited in uneasy anticipation. Tony and Bruce ran into the glade where Nico was talking with Bucky and Steve.

"Did you tell them?" Bucky stepped away from Nico to talk to Tony.

"Yes, and it looks like our guests will be here shortly," Tony told him.

"That's great," Bucky said, cocking a gun which was loaded with celestial bronze bullets. Leo sprinted out from the direction of camp, carrying an unpolished prosthetic arm.

"I got it!" Leo exclaimed, rushing up to Bucky and holding it up to where Bucky's arm should have been. "I only had a few minutes, but I managed to recycle some of the Iron Man suit into an arm. It may be a bit heavier than you are used to, but it should work."

"Woah, woah, you used the Iron Man suit pieces for his arm?" Tony held his hand up in protest.

"No, Tony, not this time. You owe it to him," Leo stated, his face showed no indication of insincerity.

Tony sighed and rubbed his head and looked at Bucky.

"He's right, I shouldn't have traded your arm without permission. Rocket had a thing for fake ligaments, I think he's got a collection. Have the arm."

Bucky smiled and looked down at the red and gold arm.

"I'm more of a winter coloring, but until I get it painted, I'd be honoured to wear the red and gold."

Nico forced himself in between the two men. "Yeah, if you two are done with your love fest, we have seconds until— "

The roar which had been increasing over the last several moments erupted. A swarm of bees enveloped the edge of the woods, about thirty metres from where the Avengers stood. Steve lowered his shield, Tony retreated towards camp to retrieve a new suit from the cabin, Nico and Will split and returned to their original fighting positions. Leo joined Percy at the frontlines with the other cabin leaders. Glancing upward, Bruce saw Sam stood poised, ready to attack from the highest branches in the trees, awaiting his signal. The Falcon smiled down at Bruce, awaiting his orders.

The bees didn't move forward. The campers sat in silence, barely daring to breath so as to remain hidden beneath the carefully placed bush. A new hissing noise filled the eardrums of the children. Bruce suppressed the discomfort it gave him, the noise grated on him, whispering for him to step out and smash whatever thing was making that wretched noise.

A soft rustling alerted Bruce that he wasn't alone. To his left, Chiron knelt down onto his knees, well, you would call it a kneel if you were a horse. The director winked at him and withdrew his bow from his back and knocked and arrow.

Bruce steadied his breath and peered through the bush. Ahead in the clearing, he saw trees being pushed aside from a large creature which was advancing into the thick woods. It appeared to be unaware of what awaited it, but knew the general direction that the camp lay.

"Hurry my child, for war, for—oh what is this?" Bruce heard what he weighed to be Echidna's voice hiss through the forest. A gradual sliding noise confirmed to him that she was dismounting from her child. "Demigod scent, the air is ripe with it!" She exclaimed gleefully. "They are close!"

Bruce caught a glimpse of her through the trees, her back was turned at the moment. He looked at Chiron who returned a momentary glance.

"Right," Bruce said looking at their enemy. "Let's send this beast back to Tartarus."


	14. Battle for the Camp

Percy lay on the ground, hidden away from the view of the Hydra. He wasn't a fan of waiting and attacking, but he was one hundred percent convinced that this was the best method of attack—okay maybe only eight-five, but it was too late to consider any alternative options.

Steve and Bucky lay next to him, their faces fixed with determination; across the clearing, Tony and Leo had adorned themselves with makeshift Iron Man-esk suits, ready to lead the Hephaestus and Aphrodite cabins into battle. Towards the back of the clearing, Ares, Athena and the Hecate campers had positioned themselves amongst the brambles, whilst the Apollo campers were perched like seagulls amongst the treetops. The Hermes and Demeter campers (who, despite their differences, were getting along) lay on the very edges of the clearing, the Stoll brothers as their acting commander; Percy later considered the potential disaster that could be, but they had cleaned up worse messes before.

Crunches of leaves approached the edge of the clearing. Percy whipped out Riptide but kept the cap on, waiting for the opportune moment.

Echidna cupped her slimy hands over her lips and called out.

"Go forth, destroy that puny camp!" She snarled, licking her tongue across her jagged teeth. Percy swallowed a little bile which rose in his mouth.

A group of snakes slithered forth with zeal, spreading out in a v-formation. One snake, about twelve feet in length, trailed slightly off course; either it detected one of the demigods or it was slightly stuck up and hated following orders. Percy watched it closely as it inched closer and closer to the Hephaestus and Aphrodite campers, he prayed to the gods that none of the girls would scream. Thankfully Piper was with them, in which case they had more to fear than a little snake.

A crack ripped apart the silence as bright green fire flashed throughout the clearing; the snakes writhed in agony as Greek fire tore at their scales. Percy starred in awe as four snakes crumbled to ashes before his eyes. A whoop of triumph sounded from where the Hermes campers hid behind the trees.

"Attack!" Echidna cried.

Then the fun began.

"Greeks, rain fire upon them!" Chiron called from where Bruce and Will where in the trees. A stream of arrows flew from the treetops, dousing the snakes with poison tipped arrows. The snakes hissed angrily as their bodies disintegrated, turning to golden dust.

The Hydra charged head into the clearing where the Hermes cabin dived as numerous traps including Greek fire, webbed nets and various clouds of smokescreen were triggered. Katie Gardener lead her cabin mates into the fray, streams of ivy and thick vines wrapped themselves around the Hydra's body.

"Release him!" Echidna screeched at the bees that hovered about. The bees buzzed and began to descend upon the vines, slowly removing the vines by sawing at them with their stingers. The Hydra blew fire out of his mouth in protest of the vines, his body shook as the vines tightened as the Demeter children increased the amount as fast as the vines would come off.

"Yo, let's fight stuff!" Leo whooped, running forward in his suit, Tony right on his tail. The Hephaestus cabin flanked from the left side of the clearing, cutting off the Hydra from Echidna's forces. Tony took to the air and lit up his flamethrowers, scorching several bees.

"Falcon, where is my eye in the sky?" Tony called over the radio.

"Look up!" Sam's voice responded. Tony glanced up and saw Sam flashing his wings as he spiraled through the trees.

"Alright, let's show 'em a good time," Tony stated, shooting down to join the battlefront.

"It would be our pleasure," Steve radioed. He and Bucky leapt out of the bushes and made a beeline to the growing chaos in the clearing. The Captain threw his shield which ricocheted. off of the Hydra's scales, clipped off a few layers revealed a sickly greenish skin beneath it's thick hide. Bucky leapt in the air and dug his knife deep into the exposed skin. The Hydra whipped one of it's heads around and aimed to snap Bucky in two when three arrows lodged in it's eye.

Steve whipped his head around and saw Kayla crouched on a tree branch, glaring at the Hydra, knocking another three arrows in her bowstring.

Bucky looked at the Hydra in astonishment and rolled off it's back and appeared by Steve's side. "Remind me to never, _ever_ , tick off a daughter of Apollo."

Steve nodded in agreement.

The Hydra was beyond the greatest form of hatred by now; it was blind with rage. Its heads swept the ground with searing hot fire, lighting the ground and campers a lit with fire. Echidna stood next to her son, whipping her tail with vigor, knocking demigods off their feet. She whistled and her swarms of bees began to attack the Apollo campers. Kayla called to Will and shortly the Apollo campers were out of the trees and fighting on the ground with the others. Tony and Sam flew in the air, dropping balls of fire and killing as many bees as possible; Leo and Percy fought side by side, trying to keep Echidna occupied.

"AREEES!" Clarisse's shrill war cry echoed in the trees as waves of campers with swords drawn advanced, Athena campers at their flanks, encircling the Hydra.

Chiron released arrows as he rode met up with Steve, Bucky and Percy who were focused on Echidna.

The Hydra showed no signs of lessoning.

"Bruce, can you get angry now?" Percy breathlessly called.

"It doesn't work like that," Bruce's voice was shaken. Percy looked over at the last place he had seen Bruce; the man was fighting a large snake with the help of a few of his Athena cabin mates.

Echidna roared and Bruce's voice screamed over the radios. "We need to separate them!"

"Get the Hydra across the creek, I'll take care of keeping them apart," Percy responded, his sword Riptide arched and pierced Echidna's tail. The snake lady screeched and charged Percy. He sidestepped and rolled as her massive claw-like fingers ripped through the place he had been standing moments earlier.

"Athena, Demeter, Ares, to me!" Steve yelled, stampeding through the creek with the rallied group of campers. The water splashed as the Hydra stomped, fighting as several spears, arrows and knifes continued to make attempts at its life.

"Concentrate your aim!" Chiron ordered. The centaur fired another shot, landing it in one of the mouths of the Hydra. It screeched and blew fire at Chiron; he galloped around it, raising his cavalier sword.

"Hecate and Hermes, plan beta!" Chiron declared. He crossed the creek between Echidna and the Hydra, leading a few campers who tossed three round three grenades like containers in the Hydra's direction. The small group circled round and took over Percy's fight with Echidna.

All the campers (who knew better) dove out of the way as the small balls started smoking, sickly purple gasses rose out, causing the Hydra to choke and stumble around; one of the heads was knocked out by the scent of the gasses. Multiple heads swung around, looking for places to breathe within the cloud.

"Steve, you figure out how to manipulate winds yet?" Percy yelled, violently slashing his sword, meeting his blade with Echidna's bared hands. Bucky took the opportunity to slide beneath the snake and make a few precise incisions with his knife.

"I'm on it!" Steve responded, rolling aside from Echidna. He flung the shield to his back and leapt between Echidna and the Hydra.

"Please work," he muttered to himself. He repeated what he had been practicing for the last few weeks; he breathed in deeply, ignoring the chaos which swirled around him. He called for the north, the east, the south and west winds to obey the son of Zeus. The winds began to become a vortex in his hands, mini tornados forming gradually as he focused his thoughts on his enemy. His electric blue eyes opened and locked on his target; then with a mighty cry he released the winds.

The gale was even more powerful than Steve had predicted, the Hydra flew a couple metres off the ground and into the free air. Freed from the cloud of gasses which it had been disorienting it, Steve looked at Percy who was already in position.

Percy stretched out his hands and summoned the water to command him. The creek bubbled and churned and a vast wall of water shot up into the air, the current washing aside any who tried to cross the barrier.

"Tony, Leo, Sam, now!" Percy grunted, the thirty-foot wave was draining a lot of his energy.

Tony, Sam and Leo burst out of the clouds carrying several small objects. They circled round the Hydra on one side of the wave while Bucky, Steve, Chiron and the others covered Percy on the other side. They released the objects in a circle around the Hydra and then landed on the grass.

"Activate now!" Leo commanded. The balls expanded, shooting out several laser beams in the direction of the Hydra. It screeched in anguish, writhing in pain as the searing hot beams tore through it's protective layers of skin.

"Fire!" Nico pointed his sword at the Hydra and a spray of arrows lodged into the Hydra's flank. The heads gnashed the air furiously, biting at campers who took every opportunity to lay a few good blows on the monster. Nico charged forward, leading a wave of campers on the right flank. He jumped over a head of the beast and nicked the eye of another. He wove in between the poison spit that was projected at him in every direction.

"Cover him!" Will screamed passionately. Bruce, Malcom and the other Athena children joined the fight, distracting several of the heads with nasty knife cuts and sword slashes.

Nico got directly beneath the belly of the beast and drove his Stygian sword straight into the belly of the beast. The Hydra flailed and howled, the movements were drawn out but not idle, instead the Hydra began to descend, forcing Nico to get down on his knees to avoid being flattened.

"It's going to crush him!" Will cried.

"Get him out of there!" Percy radioed, his voice sounding weak and fatigued.

"Kill it now!" Chiron ordered.

"Occupied at the moment," Steve called back, the sound of something hitting metal with a sickening thud told the others that Echidna was growing quite upset at this point.

Nico was pressed against the earth, the weight of the monster forcing out life with every moment.

Then it lessened. Nico looked up and saw two large green feet forcing the Hydra off the ground. Nico grabbed his sword and squirmed out from underneath the Hydra, Will grabbed him and rushed him away to the Camp for immediate medical attention.

The Hulk let out a terrifying roar and pounded its enormous fist into the head of the monster. Two of the heads took a stab at biting the Hulk, but the Hulk grabbed the necks and tied them together. The next minute was a blur for all the campers who recalled, but it ended with Bruce standing a top the Hydra, howling in victory. He grunted at looked at his siblings as if to say _what are you waiting for?_

"For Camp Half-Blood!" Clarisse screamed, tossing her spear aside. The water wall crashed down as Percy collapsed from fatigue. The half-bloods surged forth with weapons drawn and reduced the Hydra to a pile of golden dust. The Hulk roared as his size and colour reformed to Bruce Banner, who stumbled and fell into the creek.

"Help him!" Bucky yelled, turning his back to Echidna and rushing over to Percy's side.

Steve glared at Echidna, who looked too stunned to move. The mother of monsters was bleeding golden ichor from several injuries and looked utterly defeated. She collapsed to the earth with a heavy thud.

"It's over Echidna,"he joined Bucky at Percy's side.

Percy blinked at them dumbfounded.

"Is it over?" he breathed, blood trickling from his parched mouth.

"Yeah, it's over," Steve sighed, smiling at his friend.

Bucky secured his arm around Percy and helped him to his feet. Percy was about as stable as a jello that hadn't been fully set, so Steve grabbed Percy's other side to stabilize him.

Tony, Sam and Leo flew down and landed next to Percy and the others. They were all bloody and beat up, but the smiles on their faces reassured Steve that everything was going to be okay.

"Let's get him back to camp, he's going to need some ambrosia as soon as possible," Steve instructed.

"Agreed," Bruce chimed in. He was soaking wet and looked exhausted, but he seemed to be holding up. Sam was at his side in a moment, putting a supporting arm around their friend.

"Guys, I'm okay, really," Percy assured them, forcing Steve and Bucky to let go. He stumbled forward a little more towards the creek, his back to the others.

"There is no shame in asking for help Percy, really just ac-"

"PERCY WATCH OUT!" Bruce yelled.

No one had been watching Echidna. She was shooting at Percy with her venomous claws outstretched, aimed to kill. Percy turned around but it was too late.

The sound of crunching bones and pierced flesh echoed throughout the valley. The sickening sound of a body hitting the ground silenced all that had been happening in the clearing. Blood soaked the ground and drained into the river, turning the crystal clear waters into a crimson stream.

All stood in utter silence as Percy stood starring into Echidna's cold eyes, her claws still embedded in the figure of the person whom had just saved Percy's life.

Steve gasped in horror, Bucky stepped forward but Sam held him back. Percy's eyes welled with tears, his body shook with anger.

The snake woman looked down at her victim, her eyes filled with astonishment as she realized that Percy wasn't the person she had just eliminated.

Percy's sword whipped out and slashed Echidna across the neck. Her face could barely register surprise before her deformed face rolled of her neck and onto the ground. Her body transformed to golden ashes, which mixed into the blood covered grassy earth, floating into the stream of blood. Percy heaved his sword to the side and crumped to the earth, covering his face with his hands.

"Percy," a frail voice came from the body. Percy crawled immediately to the side of the victim, fighting tears which were springing from his eyes. He took the hand of the injured person. "What?"

"Ask Annabeth to forgive me," the man sighed. "I promised her, I'd be there for her graduation," the centaur coughed and blood spurt from his mouth.

"She won't have to forgive you if you live, just hold on," Percy begged, tears streaming from his eyes.

The eyes of the creature were filled with hope, but shifted to the clouds that floated over the clearing. The smile on Chiron's face broadened, then he grew still, releasing his last breath unto the world.


	15. The Beginnings

Raindrops splashed upon the dusty earth, a chilly wind ripped through the camp. The thunder boomed and lightning cracked as footsteps trudged through the muddy ground towards the burial grounds in the forest. Percy held an umbrella over himself and Annabeth who had come for Chiron's funeral. Beside them, Steve, Bruce, Clarisse and Will carried the casket of their former director. Dionysus walked in front of them, wiping a zebra striped handkerchief across his plump red cheeks, as Grover played a melancholic tune as the procession marched along the wooded path.

The service was all a blur to Percy; all that kept him from fading was knowing that Annabeth was right there with him. Her stormy grey eyes were filling with tears as they lowered the casket into the earth below. Percy put his arm around her and pulled her close, kissing her forehead softly.

Around noon, people began to leave the grounds. Percy gently guided Annabeth away from the burial site and walked slowly in the rain to camp. They made their way to the dining hall and sat down and watched the rain fall upon Camp Half-Blood.

"What do we do now," Percy sighed.

Annabeth kept her eyes fixed on the downpour. "I suppose we do what half-bloods are best at – moving on. That's what Chiron would want."

"Easier said than done," Percy picked up a stone and tossed it down the side of the hill. Annabeth rested her head on his shoulder, "I don't know where to begin."

"We'll handle this just like we handle everything else," Annabeth whispered. "Together."

* * *

Each minute felt like an hour, and every hour dragged into an infinite day as the half-bloods trudged through the following days with uncertainty. Percy's eyes hurt from exhaustion, his dreams had turned into twisted nightmares of the events of the last few days. He stood up and walked over to the window, wiping away the fog to reveal a sun rising in the grey morning sky.

A soft tapping at the door alerted Percy that it was time to go. He made his way to the door and opened it with a low creak to see Annabeth standing in an oversized grey sweater and jeans. Her curly blond hair was twirled up into a loose ponytail and her shoes were speckled with mud. She looked fantastic.

"You look nice," Percy mused, winking at her and stealing her hand from her pocket. She punched gently him in the arm.

"I just woke up Seaweed brain," she murmured, her voice still quite low.

After a few minutes of walking through camp, Percy and Annabeth arrived at the footsteps of the Big House where Steve, Bucky, Tony, Leo, Sam, Bruce, Will, Nico, Katie, Clarisse, and Malcolm were waiting for them. They all exchanged a look and set out towards the cave where Rachel Elizabeth Dare would be waiting for them.

The ascent to the cave door felt eternal. When they finally reached the top, the thirteen of them all squished through the narrow cave entrance into the dimly lit room. Rachel was sitting in front of a fire, playing with a stick in the fire as the others gathered around.

Percy sat down next and watched Rachel, as the fire seemed to intensify the redness of her hair. Her green eyes reflected the dancing flames as she cast her gaze across everybody in the room. Eventually, she tucked her stick into the flaming embers and addressed the group.

"I only wish it was under fairer circumstances that you all would be gathered here. Chiron's death-" her voice shook. Rachel paused for a moment, then continued. "Chiron's passing won't be an event that is easily forgotten – nor should it. However, the camp needs to continue functioning. We need to determine a new leader for the camp," Rachel said matter-of-factly.

"We can't just replace Chiron!" Clarisse protested passionately. Annabeth placed her hand on Clarisse's shoulder, and the child of Ares relaxed a bit.

"We're not replacing him," Annabeth's voice was soft and gentle. "But the camp won't survive unless we make these decisions."

"I suggest we vote," Malcolm spoke softly from the back of the cave.

"Not necessary," a new voice sounded from the entrance of the cave. Dionysus was leaning nonchalantly against the wall, dressed in his usual flamboyant attire. His face reflected a knowledge that was foreboding yet reassuring to the campers. "Chiron and I spoke on occasion throughout the summer, and knowing that Chiron was not immortal, there has been a replacement whom Chiron specifically asked for."

The campers exchanged looks of confusion, apprehension as well as concern as to who the leader could be. Percy locked eyes with Leo who simply mouthed "not me," and then drew a line across his neck. Percy stifled a laugh.

"Now I don't necessarily understand his choice," Dionysus began to say. "However he did care for you all much more than I ever have, and therefore the new camp director, if he chooses to accept, is Bruce Banner."

All heads pivoted in Bruce's direction. The usually quiet man was relatively calm outwardly, but Percy noticed that his fingers were playing with the sand on the floor cave.

"And…if I don't accept?" Bruce pondered aloud.

"Of course you're not going to accept," Tony interrupted with a booming voice. Tony cleared his throat and lowered his voice. "If you stay here, you can't leave. It will be years and years of never seeing the outside world again."

"Maybe that's a good thing," Bruce responded.

"No Bruce it's not. Think about it; no more robots, no more space adventures, no science, and what about us?"

Bruce looked around at the other camp counselors, at Dionysus and then back to Tony. "Is this place any less important?"

Tony opened his mouth to speak, but for once thought better and remained silent. Bruce smiled softly.

"Coming back to Camp Half-Blood felt like coming home again; the kids are relatively safe here, and the Ares cabin can easily handle me if I get angry." A sound of chuckling echoed in the cave as they remembered memories from earlier that season. "Being an Avenger is cool and all, but I think it's time I give back to the camp who made me who I am. I accept the position of being the camp director."

The others cheered and clapped loudly. Bruce smiled and Tony patted him on the shoulder.

"You sure man? I will really miss my lab partner."

"Why don't you drop by sometime, I'm sure the other campers would love to meet Iron Man. Plus, I am sure Leo will want to see his big brother sometime."

"You know it!" Leo beamed. "Plus, I need someone to get me out of trouble with the new director. Big enhanced monsters are not known for falling for smooth talk from ol' Leo."

Percy and the others laughed.

"Yeah, yeah, happy emotions and stuff. Alright Avengers, time to pack your bags and say sappy things and get outta town. The pegasi are waiting for you in the stables."

An hour later, the Avengers had finished saying goodbye to the campers and they joined Percy at the stables.

"They'll take you into New York, but you'll have to find your way from there," Percy instructed.

Steve stroked the neck of the pegasus and looked at Percy. "Thanks, for everything this summer. It was surprisingly a pleasant experience."

"Opposed to…"

"A waste of time, money, effort, ambition, you name it," Stark said, nudging Percy in the shoulder. "I'm joking…well mostly."

The others mounted the pegasi and Percy led them to the tarmac.

"Come visit us soon! And keep an eye on Banner!" Sam called out to Percy as the creatures began to beat their wings. Within seconds, the pegasi ascended into the air and the wind carried them off into the midday sun.

* * *

A year had passed since Percy had last seen the Avengers. Now he was currently in the seating area in the Avengers Tower, drinking a blue Coke and chatting with Steve and Sam about the progress at camp.

"Yeah, Bruce has really won over the camp. He has made a few changes, such as beginning plans for a better science lab for the Hephaestus cabin, as well as updating the safety features in the arena. He, Annabeth and Leo do a lot of nerdy things that I don't understand, but it's cool. How did the Avengers do this year?"

"Nothing too crazy this year," Steve sighed and leaned back in his chair.

"Yeah, I got a bit of flying time in, but our biggest concern was some guy making claims in Egypt that he was going to assassinate the president. Bucky, Steve and I gave him no chance to reconsider," Sam said with a boastful tone.

"Nice, so how often do y-"

"Guys!" Tony's voice sounded from down the hall. "We have a code orange!"

"Code orange?" Percy questioned.

"Yeah, Wanda is calling for help in Japan. Some body's college science project grew a conscience and is brainwashing the city," Tony explained as came running down the hall, his suit assembling around him as he moved.

"What does code orange mean?" Percy asked again.

"It means time for us to go kick some butt," Sam grinned and ran toward the helipad, grabbing his wings from the cabinet. Steve grabbed his shield and jumped in the helicopter and motioned for Tony to join them.

"Time to suit up kid," Tony tossed a suit in Percy's direction. Percy picked it up and felt the material; it was a dark blue, smooth to the touch. There was a belt loop where he could store Riptide, as well as a retractable shield to go with the outfit. He gawked at Tony who simply nodded confidently at the young half-blood. "How's that for a recruitment gift?"

Percy grinned and mumbled beneath his breath, "finally."

The End


End file.
